The Ports and Shipping sector are the backbone of domestic and international trade. The Port infrastructure play an important role in the trade of the country and are the gateways for EXIM Trade. Over all the ports in India handle 90% by volume and 70% by value of India’s external trade. In order to meet the ever increasing trade requirements of the country, the focus has been on the infrastructure development and capacity enhancement of the Ports. Over the years the cargo handling capacity of the major ports has been growing steadily. The cargo handling capacity of the major ports in year 2012-13 was 744.91 MTPA which could touch 1065.83 MTPA in 2016-17. Over the years the traffic handled at the major ports has also been increasing gradually. The major ports could handle 545.79 MT of traffic in 2012-13 which touched 648.40 MT in 2016-17. Sandeep Sharma takes a look at the Ports and Shipping sector in India…. FACTS AND FIGURES The major ports in India have recorded a growth of 3.91% and together handled 174.02 Million Tonne of cargo during the period April to June, 2018 as against 167.48 Million Tonnes handled during the corresponding period of previous year. For the period from April- June 2018, nine ports - Kolkata including Haldia, Paradip, Visakhapatnam, Kamarajar, Chennai, Cochin, New Mangalore, JNPT and Deendayal (Kandla) Port have registered positive growth in traffic. Cargo traffic handled at Major Ports: The highest growth was registered by Kamarajar Port (11.93%), followed by Kolkata including Haldia (10.21%), Paradip (9%), Cochin 7.85%) and Visakhapatnam (7.24%) Kamarajar Port growth was mainly due to increase in Other Liquids by 29.63%, Other Misc. Cargo by 15.06%, POL by 7.51% and Thermal & Steam Coal by 4.93%. In Kolkata Port, overall growth was 10.21%. Kolkata Dock System (KDS) registered traffic growth of 2.82%. Whereas Haldia Dock Complex (HDC) registered impressive growth of 13.49% which is highest among all the Major Ports. During the period April to June 2018, Deendayal (Kandla) Port handled the highest volume of traffic i.e. 29.13 Million tonnes (16.74% share), followed by Paradip with 26.64 Million Tonnes (15.31% share), JNPT with 17.37 Million Tonnes (9.98% share), Visakhapatnam with 16.20 Million Tonnes (9.31% share) and Kolkata including Haldia with 15.13 Million Tonnes (8.69%). Together, these five ports handled around 60% of Major Port Traffic. Commodity-wise percentage share of POL was maximum i.e. 30.36%, followed by Container (20.36%), Thermal & Steam Coal (16.26%), Other Misc. Cargo (12.41%), Coking & Other Coal (7.49%), Iron Ore & Pellets (6.47%), Other Liquid (4.06%), Finished Fertilizer (1.42%) and FRM (0.9%). SAGARMALA PROGRAMME The main objective of the Sagarmala project is to promote port-led development, and to provide infrastructure for transporting goods to and from ports quickly, efficiently and cost-effectively. Under Sagarmala Programme, 415 projects, at an estimated investment of approximately Rs.8 lakh crore, have been identified across port modernization & new port development, port connectivity enhancement, port-linked industrialization and coastal community development for phase wise implementation over the period 2015 to 2035. These projects are to be taken up by the relevant Central Ministries/Agencies and State Governments preferably through private/PPP mode. The Sagarmala Project aims to enhance the capacity of major and non-major ports and modernizing them to make them efficient, optimizing the use of existing and future transport assets and developing new lines/linkages for transport (including roads, rail, inland waterways and coastal routes), setting up of logistics hubs, and establishment of industries and manufacturing centres to be served by ports in EXIM and domestic trade. In addition to strengthening port and evacuation infrastructure, it also aims at simplifying procedures used at ports for cargo movement and promotes usage of electronic channels for information exchange leading to quick, efficient, hassle-free and seamless cargo movement. INLAND WATERWAYS To make use of the vast coastline, the Government is developing National Waterways as a key transport intervention, as part of an integrated transport network strategy, which will help correct the transport modal mix that imposes huge logistics costs on the Indian economy. The Government has got a budget allocation of Rs. 228.00 crore for the development of Inland waterways transport, which also includes Rs. 126.00 crore for North Eastern Region, for the year 2017-18. Out of 111 National Waterways declared by the Government through the National Waterways Act, 2016, National Waterway-1 (Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly river system from Allahabad to Haldia), National Waterway-2 (River Brahmaputra from Dhubri to Sadiya) & National Waterway-3 (West Coast Canal from Kottapuram to Kollam along with Udyogamandal and Champakara Canals) are already operational. In addition, in National Waterway-4 (Kakinada- Puducherry canals along with Godavari to Krishna rivers) fairway development works in Vijayawada – Muktyala stretch of river Krishna have commenced under the Phase-I. Work for installation of floating terminals at four locations has commenced. Around 36 new NWs have been found technically viable as per the feasibility study. Out of these 36 NWs, developmental activities have been initiated on 8 most viable NWs in 2017-18. These include: A) River Barak (NW-16): Proposal for development at a cost of Rs. 76.01 crore has been approved for phase -1 of NW-16 from Silchar to Bhanga. Maintenance dredging for fairway development work in Silchar-Bhanga stretch has commenced. Consultant has been engaged for the upgradation of terminals at Badarpur, Karimganj and new floating terminal at Silchar. B) River Gandak (NW-37): Proposal for development at a cost of Rs. 12.91 crore has been approved on 02.06.2017 and fairway maintenance work has commenced. C) Waterways in Goa: NW-27-Cumberjua, NW 68 – Mandovi and NW 111 – Zuari: A proposal for the development of NWs in Goa at an estimated cost of Rs. 22.65 crore has been approved on 02.06.2017. Work is proposed to be executed through Government of Goa with the assistance of Mormugao Port Trust. A Tripartite MoU is expected to be signed for the commencement of works. D) Alappuzha – Kottayam – Athirampuzha Canal (NW-9): Proposal for development of the waterway at an estimated cost of Rs.1.60 crore has been approved on 02.06.2017. Tendering for night navigation facilities has been completed. Dredging is taken up departmentally. E) River Rupnarayan (NW-86): Proposal for development of the waterway at an estimated cost of Rs. 24.00 crore has been approved on 02.06.2017. Work has been awarded for setting up of floating terminal. F) Sunderbans Waterways (NW-97): Proposal for the development of waterway at an estimated cost of Rs. 18.10 crore has been sanctioned on 10.08.2017. Tender for dredging and floating terminals are in advanced stages. CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE IN MARITIME & SHIPBUILDING The Centre of Excellence in Maritime & Shipbuilding (CEMS), a well-funded start-up in skill development for maritime and shipbuilding sector, has announced setting up of 24 labs -6 in Mumbai and 18 in Vizag campus. It also shared the list of courses being offered. The labs being set up include Product Design & Validation, Advance Manufacturing, Hull Design, Automation, Welding Technology, Robotics, Virtual Reality, Advance Machine & Robotics, Electrical and several others. SKILL DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVES The Ministry of Shipping has completed skill gap studies of 21 coastal districts in eight states and three Union Territories (Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Odisha, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Puducherry, Andaman & Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep) and currently its implementation is underway. Training of 500 students per-year-per-district for the next 3 years through Sagarmala DDU GKY (MoRD) - convergence for Port and Maritime sector skills is being undertaken and respective State Governments are issuing Expression of Interest (EoI) for empanelment of training partners. The project approvals for Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal have been done. For the first phase, training has commenced for 2028 students, 1917 have been trained and 1128 have been placed. 92 students are under training in Odisha. PROJECTS GALORE JAWAHARLAL NEHRU PORT TRUST (JNPT) JNPT plans to construct dry ports at various locations. These projects include: 1) The Dry Port at Wardha is proposed to be constructed over an area of 140 hectare in a phased manner. The first phase involves development of approx. 25 ha of the total area. The completion is targeted in 1 1/2 years. 2) The Dry Port at Jalna is proposed to be constructed over an area of 180 hectares in a phased manner. Phase-I involves development of approx. 60 Hectares of the total area. The construction will commence after preparation of DPR for the project. 3) The Dry Port at Niphad in Nashik District. The present extant of land available is approx. 100-110 acre. The construction is likely to commence soon. 4) The Dry port is planned at Ranjani Village in Sangli district. The present extant of land available is approx. 2500 acre. Pre-feasibility study of the project is in progress. The construction will commence one year after finalization of land acquisition process. VISAKHAPATNAM PORT TRUST As per the PIB communiqué, the project awaiting launch at Visakhapatnam Port includes: 1) Upgradation of existing iron ore handling facility at Outer Harbour of Vizag Port at a cost of Rs 580 Crore. This would involve modernising and upgrading the 40 year old iron ore handling facility so that it can handle larger vessels of 2 lakh DWT with loading rate of 8000 MT/hour. Capacity enhancement would be to 16.20 MTPA from 12.50 MTPA. The work was awarded to ESSAR Vizag Terminals Ltd on DBFOT basis with revenue share of 31% on 14.5.2015. The project was completed on 31st May, 2018. 2) Development of berths at the inner harbour of the port at a cost of Rs 243 Crore and Post Panamax Quay Cranes costing Rs.151 Crore. The capacity of the two new berths is 6.39 MTPA and they will handle Panamax vessels of draft upto 14.5 meters. The two Post Panamax Quay cranes and four Rubber Tyre Gantry Cranes have been procured to modernise operations and make them more efficient. The cranes were commissioned in March 2018 in a record time of 12 months. They will lead to higher productivity of 27-30 moves per hour and are equipped with latest safety features. 3) High rise wall of 7.5 m constructed from Seahorse Junction to Convent Junction to prevent dust from spreading to neighbouring residential areas. It has a total length of 1700 metre and has been constructed at a cost of Rs 10.35 Crore. 4) Four-laning of 4.15 Kms of port connectivity road – Phase-II, constructed at a cost of Rs. 77 Crore. This will allow faster transportation of road bound cargo. Visakhapatnam Port Trust and NHAI hold 50:50 equity in the project. Equity of Rs.20 crore by VPT is through Sagarmala. 5) The foundation for two port projects was laid worth Rs.679 Crore. The first project is for construction of Grade Separator from H-7 area to Port Connectivity Road by-passing convent Junction at a cost of Rs. 60 Crore under Sagarmala. This will enable hassle free movement to cargo vehicles by providing a bypass at the busy convent junction to the Port Connectivity Road duly separating the city traffic. The project will be implemented by Visakhapatnam Port Road Company Ltd, an SPV with VPT and NHAI. The second project is for the development of 12.7 km road connectivity to VPT from Sheelanagar Junction to Anakapalli-Sabbavaram/Pendurti-Anandapuram road (NH 16) at a cost of Rs. 619 Crore. The connectivity will help the Port based cargo movement to avoid the city for both South and North bound cargo. This will connect the Port directly to Visakhapatnam city by-pass road from Anakapalli to Anandapuram. The project will be implemented by NHAI. DEENDAYAL PORT The Standing Finance Committee of Ministry of Shipping has cleared a project for setting up an exclusive, fully mechanized handling facility for fertilizer cargo at Deendayal Port in Kandla. The facility will be developed at berth number 14 of the port, which is being constructed at an approximate cost of Rs.138 crore. The port will further invest approximately Rs.340 crore for the project from its internal resources. Initially, the proposed facility will handle 2.60 MMTPA and subsequently this will be raised to 4.50 MMTPA. The tendering work for the project is in progress. The facility is expected to be commissioned by October, 2020. SUBARNAREKHA PORT DEVELOPMENT Subarnarekha Port Pvt Ltd is the developer for Subarnarekha port project. The environmental clearance for the project is in place. The Government of Odisha has already transferred 692.68 acre of land to the port developers. The Subarnarekha river mouth is envisaged to be developed as a commercial port on the build, own, operate, share and transfer (BOOST) model. The construction is likely to start soon. ODISHA GOVERNMENT PROPOSES TWELVE NON-MAJOR PORTS The Odisha Government has given proposals for establishment of 12 non-major ports in the State including four in Balasore, two each in Ganjam, Bhadrak and Puri and one each in Jagatsinghpur and Kendrapara, respectively has been issued by the Government. COASTAL BERTH SCHEME The Government has extended the period of Coastal Berth Scheme beyond 12th Five Year Plan i.e from 1st April, 2017 to 31st March, 2020. The scope of the scheme has also been enlarged to cover the cost of preparation of Detailed Project Report (DPR) and capital dredging at Major Ports. The Coastal Berth Scheme provides financial assistance to Major/Non-Major Ports/ State Maritime Board/ State Governments for creation of infrastructure to promote movement of cargo/passengers by Sea/National Waterways. FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT (FDI) According to the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), the Indian ports sector has received FDI worth US$ 1.64 billion between April 2000 and December 2017. OPTIMISING OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCIES Ministry of Shipping has been striving to improve their operational efficiencies through policy and procedural changes and mechanization. As a result key efficiency parameters have improved considerably. The average turnaround time has improved from 87.36 Hrs in 2015-16 to 82.56 Hrs in 2016-17 and significant improvement to 63.33 Hrs during the 2017-18 (as on 31.10.2017). The average output per ship berth day has increased from 13156 Tonnes in 2015-16 to 14583 Tonnes in 2016-17 and to 14912 Tonnes in 2017-18(as on 31.10.2017). FUTURE OUTLOOK India has a vast coastline spanning 7516.6 km with 12 major ports and about 200 non-major ports. The possibilities of transporting men and material through the Sea route are immense. The potential is huge for both domestic as well as international trade. The Indian Government has allowed Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) of up to 100 percent under the automatic route for port and harbour construction and maintenance projects. With the announcement of number of long-awaited measures, the port sector is all set for higher growth trajectory. With the launch of Sagarmala programme, the progress on the ground has started showing signs of improvement in terms of capacity addition, efficiency improvement and ease of doing business. Under the Sagarmala programme, the master plans for all the 12 major ports have been prepared, and 142 port capacity expansion projects and capacity of 884 MTPA have been identified for implementation over the next 20 years. The 'Make in India' programme is likely to be the game changer for the manufacturing segment. The Government of India is laying emphasis on building manufacturing ecosystem in and around the ports. This is likely to attract investment and boost trade along the coastline. The Ports are likely to drive socio-economic change in the years to come. According to TechSci Research report titled, “India Port Infrastructure Market By Type, By Cargo, Forecast & Opportunities, 2011 - 2025”, the ports infrastructure market in India is projected to grow at a CAGR of over 9% during 2016-2025. The expected growth is attributed to heavy infrastructure spending at ports and related infrastructures such as connecting roads, railways and Coastal Economic Zones. In addition, the National Perspective Plan of Government of India envisaging an investment of over US$10 billion for the next five years is likely to boost development of ports. This investment inflow is anticipated to minimize demand and supply gap at ports in India in the coming years.