According to official data released by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) in May 2025, 12 major ports of India registered a 4.3% increase in cargo handling, from 819 Million Tonnes (MT) in Financial Year 2023-24 (FY24) to approximately 855 MT in FY25. This growth signifies the resilience and capacity of major Indian ports in accommodating increasing trade volumes.
- Also, this increase in traffic was mainly attributed by higher container throughput (10%), fertilizer cargo handling (13%), Petroleum, Oil, and Lubricants (POL) cargo handling (3%), and handling of miscellaneous commodities (31%) compared to FY24.
About Major Ports in India:
i.At present, there are 12 major ports in India, which are 100% owned by the Government of India (GoI) and administered by the provisions of the Major Port Authorities Act, 2021.
ii.Name of these 12 major Indian Ports are: Deendayal Port Authority (Kandla, Gujarat), Mumbai Port Authority (Mumbai, Maharashtra), Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority (Mumbai), Mormugao Port Authority (Mormugao, Goa), New Mangalore Port Authority (Mangalore, Karnataka), Cochin Port Authority (Kochi, Kerala), V.O. Chidambaranar Port Authority (Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu, TN), Chennai Port Authority (Chennai, TN), Kamarajar Port Limited (Chennai, Tamil Nadu), Visakhapatnam Port Authority (Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, AP), Paradip Port Authority (Paradip, Odisha), and Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port Authority (Kolkata, West Bengal, WB).
Key Milestones:
i.Two major Indian Ports i.e. Odisha-based Paradip Port Authority (PPA) and Kandla (Gujarat)-based Deendayal Port Authority (DPA) have achieved a historic milestone of breaching the 150 MT cargo handling mark in FY25, reaffirming their status as key hubs of maritime trade and operational excellence.
ii.As per MoPSW data, Mumbai (Maharashtra)-based Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority (JNPA) achieved a record by handled 7.3 million Twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) in FY25, marking a 13.5% Year-on-Year (Y-o-Y) growth.
Key Findings:
i.In FY25, Petroleum, Oil, and Lubricants (POL), comprising crude oil, petroleum products, and LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas)/LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) , emerged as the top cargo category at India’s major ports, accounting for 254.5 MT or 29.8% of the total cargo handled.
- This was followed by container traffic at 193.5 MT (22.6%), coal at 186.6 MT (21.8%), and other categories including iron ore, pellets, fertilizers, and miscellaneous goods.
ii.Indian ports collectively allocated 962 acres of land for port-led industrialization, expected to generate an income of Rs 7,565 crore in FY25.
- Additionally, lessees are projected to make future investments worth Rs 68,780 crore on the allotted land, which reaffirms investors’ confidence in port-led development.
- Private-sector participation has been instrumental in this port-led development, as their investment in Public-Private Partnership (PPP) projects at major ports has increased by 3-times from Rs 1,329 crore (in FY23) to Rs 3,986 crore (in FY25).
iv.Also, operational performance of major ports of India continued to improve in FY25, with Pre-Berthing Detention (PBD) Time (on port account) increased by around 36% compared to FY24.
v.Cargo volumes have exponentially increased from 581 MT to around 855 MT between FY15 and FY25, reflecting Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of nearly 4%.
- Containerized cargo witnessed an increase of 70% over the last 10 years, from 7.9 million TEUs (in FY15) to 13.5 million TEUs (in FY25).
Key Progress made by Major Ports in Last 10 Years:
i.The total income of major ports in India, more than doubled in last 10 years i.e. from Rs 11,760 crore (in FY15) to Rs 24,203 crore (in FY25) at 7.5% CAGR.
ii.Operating surplus approximately 3-times to Rs 12,314 crore at a 13% CAGR over the last decade.
iii.Also, the operational efficiency of major ports has improved significantly, with the operating ratio decreasing from 64.7% (in FY15) to 42.3% (inFY25), which reinforces the ports’ financial stability.
Key Progress in Productivity Indicators:
i.As per the data, Output per Ship Berth Day (OSBD) has increased 12,458 tonnes(t) to 18,304 t in the last 10 years.
ii.Average Turnaround Time (TRT) has improved by 48%, reducing from 96 hours (in FY15) to 49.5 hours (in FY25).
iii.Also, PBD Time (on port account) improved by nearly 24%, reducing from 5.02 hours (in FY15) to 3.8 hours (in FY25).
iv.Idle time (%) declined by 29%, from 23.1% (in FY15) to 16.3% (in FY25).
About Indian Ports Association (IPA):
It is a statutory body constituted in 1966 under Societies Registrations Act. It aims to foster growth and development of all major ports which are under the supervisory control of MoPSW.
Chairman- Sunil Paliwal
Headquarters- New Delhi, Delhi
About Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways (MoPSW):
Union Minister- Sarbananda Sonowal (Constituency- Dibrugarh, Assam)
Minister of State (MoS)- Shantanu Thakur (Constituency- Bangaon, West Bengal, WB)
