13 Major Indian Ports | Important Points | UPSC

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What are ports?

A port can be defined as a harbor or an area that is able to provide shelter to numerous boats and vessels (transferring people or cargo) and can also allow constant or periodic transactions of shipment.

Ports infrastructure is key to the development of any nation.
India has a coastline spanning about 7,500 km.
Around 90 percent of India’s external trade by volume and 70 percent by value are handled by ports.
Imports of crude petroleum, iron ore, coal, and other essential commodities are all through the sea route.

13 Major Sea Ports in India

India has 13 major seaports (12 Government-owned and one private – Ennore) and 205 notified minor and intermediate ports that handle a huge volume of traffic.

About 95 percent by volume and 70 percent by value of India’s total international trade are carried on through maritime transportation.
All ports in India are situated in the 9 coastal states of India namely Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Goa, Gujarat, West Bengal, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu.
On the west coast, there are the ports of Mumbai, Kandla, Mangalore, JNPT, Vadhavan, Mormugao, and Cochin.
The ones on the east coast are the ports at Chennai, Tuticorin, Visakhapatnam, Paradip, Kolkata, and Ennore. The last one, Ennore is a registered public company with the government owning a 68% stake.

In Andaman and Nicobar Islands, there is Port Blair.
Mumbai is the largest natural port in India.
As you know, Indian government has a federal structure, and according to its constitution, maritime transport is to be administered by both the Central and the State governments. While the central government’s shipping ministry administers the major ports, the minor and intermediate ports are administered by the relevant departments or ministries in the nine coastal states – Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.

Port	Features
Chennai	Artificial Port Second busiest port
Kochi	Sited in the Vembanad lake Exports of spices and salts
Ennore (Private Port)	India’s First corporatized port
Kolkata	India’s only major Riverine port Situated on Hugli river Known as Diamond Harbour
Kandla	Known as Tidal Port Acknowledged as Trade Free Zone Largest port by volume of cargo handled.
Mangalore	Deals with the iron ore exports
Mormugao	Situated on the estuary of the river Zuari
Mumbai Port Trust	Largest Natural Port and harbour In India The busiest port in India
Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) also known as Nhava Sheva, Navi Mumbai	Largest Artificial Port It is the Largest Container Port in India.
Paradip	Natural Harbor deals with the export of iron and aluminium
Tuticorin	A major port in south India deals with the fertilizers and petrochemical products
Visakhapatnam	Deepest port of India deals with the export of iron ore to Japan. Amenities for building and fixing of ships are available
Port Blair	The port connected to the mainland of India through ship and flight. This port is situated in between two international shipping lines namely Saudi Arabia & US Singapore.

1. Chennai Port

The Chennai Port also known as Madras Port which is the second largest Port of India.
Chennai Port, formerly known as Madras Port, is the second-largest container port of India, behind Mumbai’s Nhava Sheva (JNPT). The port is the largest one in the Bay of Bengal.
It is an artificial and all-weather port with wet docks.

It is due to the existence of the port that the city of Chennai eventually became known as the Gateway of South India.
The operation of this Port started in the year 1881 and it is the third oldest Port of India.
It is the Tamil Nadu’s main Port and lies on the Coromandel coast of the Bay of Bengal.
Its main Cargo handling Port increased its handling record from 0.5 million to 100 million as recorded in 2015 – 16.
It aims to expand it’s cargo handling near 140 million. It has historic importance.

2. Kochi (Cochin) Port

The Cochin Port is situated in Kerala.
Cochin Port or Kochi Port is a major port on the Arabian Sea – Laccadive Sea – Indian Ocean sea-route in the city of Kochi and is one of the largest ports in India. It is also the first transshipment terminal in India.
Kochi Port in Kerela is the example of Tidal port .
The port is generally called as the natural gateway for the industrial and agricultural produce markets of South-West India.
It is one of the centers for shipbuilding.

It lies between two islands namely Willingdon and Vallarpadam.
It mainly exports coffee, tea, spices while it mainly imports mineral oil and chemical fertilizers. It is a shipbuilding centre of India.

3. Ennore Port

India’s First corporatized port and 12th major port of India.
It is located on the Coromandel Coast about 24 km north of the Chennai Port.
Trades: Iron Ore, Coal, petroleum products and chemicals.

It has both railway and road links for the ease of transportation.
It is the major exporter of coal.
It handles nearly 16 million tonnes of coal every year.
It is one of the Privately owned Port of India.

4. Kolkata Port

It is situated on the bank of river Hugli, 128 km from the Bay of Bengal.

Port of Kolkata or Kolkata Port, officially known as Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port Trust, is the only riverine major port of India, located in the city of Kolkata, West Bengal, around 203 kilometres from the sea.
It is the oldest operating port in India and was constructed by the British East India Company.
Kolkata is a freshwater port with no variation in salinity.
Known as Diamond Harbour
Known for twin dock systems viz. Kolkata Dock on the eastern bank and Haldia Dock on the western bank of river Hooghly.
It is the main centre for the trade of Jute.
Trade: Jute, tea, Coal, Steel
This Port mainly deals trading with Australia and south- east Asian countries.
The Kolkata Port is also known as the ‘Gateway of Eastern India’.
It is the only Port having two docks namely Kolkata docks and Haldia docks.

It is one the oldest Port of India constructed by East India Company.

5. Kandla Port

The Kandla Port is situated 90 km from the Gulf of Kutch, Gujarat.
The place where it is situated is called Kandla creek.
Deendayal Port Trust, located in town of Kandla, is a seaport and town in Kutch district of Gujarat state in Western India, near the city of Gandhidham.
Located on the Gulf of Kutch, it is one of major ports on the west coast.
Known as Tidal Port
It also relieves the congestion of Mumbai Port
Largest port by volume of cargo handled.
It has been acknowledged as Trade Free Zone.

It is the busiest and richest Port of India constructed in the year 1950 after the partition of India at the loss of Karachi Port.
It is the largest Port which handles transportation of millions of Cargoes in the country.
It is the first export processing Port of India.
It mainly imports petroleum, steel, iron machinery, chemicals, salts, textiles and grains. Currently it is the highest profitable Port of India.

6. Mangalore Port

It is located in the coastal city of Mangalore.
It is the major seaport of India situated at the northern bank of the Gurupura river.
Former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi inaugurated Mangalore Port in the year 1974.
It is also known as Panambur Port, Karnataka.
It is deep water, all weathered port.
Deals with the iron ore exports
It is the only major port of the coastal state of Karnataka.
It is a deep water seaport which works throughout the year.
The essential import commodities include timber, wood pulp, fertilizers, crude oils, LPG and export commodities include coffee, granite stone, iron, manganese, pallets, cashews etc.

7. Mormugao Port

The Mormugao Port is situated in Goa.
Situated on the estuaries of the river Juari
It is a natural harbour
This Port flourishes the trade affairs of the state.
It was designated as a major port in 1963.
It is the major iron ore exporter of India. It nearly exports about 50 million tonnes of iron ore every year.

8. Mumbai Port Trust

Largest Natural Port and harbor in India
Earlier, this port location was used by the navies of Shivaji.
This port has 3 enclosed wet docks:
- Prince’s Dock
- Victoria Dock
- Indira Dock
The busiest Port in India
Jawahar Dweep is an island in the harbor, for Crude and petroleum products handling.
It is the largest Port of India located on the mainland of West Mumbai.
It is 10 to 12 metre deep natural harbour.
It handles about one fifth of India’s foreign trade.
It plays an important role to increase the economy of the country and trade affairs.
It is also known as Front Bay or Gateway of India.
It mainly imports liquid chemicals, petroleum products, and mineral oil and it mainly exports leather, cotton textiles, tobacco, manganese etc.

9. Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT)

The Jawaharlal Nehru Port is situated in the east of Mumbai, Maharashtra.
It is also known by the name Nhava Sheva.
Largest Artificial Port and also the largest container port of India.
The name Nhava Sheva is given because of the names of two villages that existed in that area.
It is located on the eastern shore of Mumbai harbor off Elephanta Island and can be accessed via Thane Creek.
This port is the terminal point of the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor of Indian Railways.
Trade: Textiles, sporting goods, carpets, pharmaceuticals, chemicals etc.
It was constructed in 1989. It is completely owned by the Government of India.
About 56% of the trade is done by this Port.

10. Vadhavan Port

This will be 13^th major port in India.
With the development of this port, India will become one of the countries in the top-10 container ports in the world.
A special purpose vehicle (SPV) will be formed with Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) as the lead partner, with equity participation equal to or more than 50% to implement the project.
The port will be developed on the landlord model.
Vadhavan port has been planned by the JNPT as an ‘All Weather, All Cargo’ satellite port to enhance capabilities in handling deep draft ships and larger vessels.

11. Paradip Port

First Major Port commissioned after Independence.
Located at the confluence of Mahanadi river and Bay of Bengal.
It is a very deep seaport which allows it to handle heavy and bulk containers.
This Port has its own railway for the transportation of goods.
This Port mainly deals with the trade of coal and iron ores. Iron ore is exported to Japan in huge quantity.

12. Tuticorin Port

Tuticorin Port is one of the major ports of India which was constructed recently in Tamil Nadu.
It is developed 8 km south of the old Tuticorin Port.
It is properly connected by railways and roads.
This Port mainly trades with Sri Lanka.
This port has been renamed as V.O.Chidambaranar Port.
It is an artificial port located in the Gulf of Mannar.
It is famous for pearl fishery in the Bay of Bengal and thus also known as the pearl city.
Trade: coal, salt, petroleum products, and fertilizers.

13. Visakhapatnam Port

The Visakhapatnam port is located in a beautiful Creek in the Andhra Pradesh state of India.
This port is a natural harbor and also is the 2nd largest port by volume of cargo handled.
Port is located midway between the Chennai Port and Kolkata Port.
The deepest port of India deals with the export of iron ore to Japan.
Amenities for building and fixing of ships are available.
Lord Willingdon inaugurated the Visakhapatnam port on December 19, 1933.
This Port handles large cargo around 1.2 lakh every year.
It has three main harbours namely outer harbour, inner harbour and the fishery harbour.
This Port deals with the trade of coal, iron ores, pallets, oil and alumina.

New Names of Ports

Ennore Port – Kamarajar Port.
Kandla Port – Deendayal Port Trust.
Kolkata Port – Dr. Syama Prasad Mukherjee Port.
Nhava Sheva – Jawaharlal Nehru Port.
Panambur Port – New Mangalore Port.
Tuticorin Port – V.O. Chidambaram Port.

Name	City	State
Deendayal Port Trust	Kandla	Gujarat
Paradip Port Trust	Paradeep	Odisha
Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust	Navi Mumbai	Maharashtra
Visakhapatnam Port Trust	Vizag	Andhra Pradesh
Mumbai Port Trust	Mumbai	Maharashtra
Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port Trust	Kolkata	West Bengal
Chennai Port Trust	Chennai	Tamil Nadu
New Mangaluru Port Trust	Mangaluru	Karnataka
V.O. Chidambaranar Port Trust	Thoothukkudi	Tamil Nadu
Cochin Port Trust	Kochi	Kerala
Kamarajar Port Limited	Chennai Ennore	Tamil Nadu
Mormugao Port Trust	Margao	Goa

Important Facts on Indian Ports

Total no. of Major Seaports in India – 13.
Largest Port in India – Mumbai Port.
- Busiest Port in India.
- Largest Natural Port and Harbor In India.
Second Largest Port in India – Chennai Port.
Oldest Shipyard of India – Vizag Port.
Oldest Port of India – Lothal Port (Gujarat).
Deepest Port in India – Gangavaram Port (Andhra Pradesh).
The Base of Indian Coast Guard – Haldia Port.
First Corporate Port in India – Ennore Port.
First Private Port in India – Port Pipavav (Gujarat).
Oldest Operating Port in India – Kolkata Port.
- Only major Riverine Port in India.
Iron Ore Exporting Port in India – Mormugoa Port.
Largest Container Port in India – Jawaharlal Nehru Port.
- Largest Artificial Port in India – Jawaharlal Nehru Port.
Asia’s first Export Processing Zone (EPZ) – Kandla Port (1965).
Only Natural Seaport in the shores of Bay of Bengal – Vizag Port.
First Major Port commissioned after Independence – Paradip Port.
Biggest port of India based on the volume of freight handled – Kandla Port.
Indian State with the Largest no. of Major Ports – Tamil Nadu.

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