Total number of ports in India FY 2008-2023

In financial year 2023, the total number of ports across India stood at 229. There was an increase in the number of ports across the south Asian country after five years in 2019. Five new non-major ports were added to the list. In 2023, the country had 12 major and 217 non-major ports. 

An asset to the Indian economy

The role of the maritime transport sector in attracting investments and creating employment in the Indian economy is irrefutable. As much as three-fourth of the country’s trade value is handled through maritime transport. In the fiscal year 2021, the total revenue generated from the major ports in India nearly reached 1.5 trillion Indian rupees. It should come as no surprise that the shipping companies make huge profits and are listed among the leading companies in the country. As of December 2022, Shipping Corporation of India, a public sector enterprise owned by the government, turned in a net profit of more than six billion rupees, making it one of the leading shipping companies in India.

The mighty Indian merchant fleet

Ever since its independence, India’s shipping industry has registered remarkable growth. In fiscal year 2020, India had over 1.4 thousand vessels registered under its flag. The Indian shipping industry has supported the transportation of domestic and foreign freight. However, for the growth of industry and higher participation of the Indian fleet for its trade, the central government devised various measures to ease nationality norms for ship and vessel registration. The Indian flag vessels handled nearly 60 million metric tons of overseas cargo that same year, more than half of which constituted liquid bulk cargo.