The government plans to add 100 more new vessels to its merchant fleet over the next five years to cut USD 75 billion in freight bills, Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said on Tuesday.
Currently, India has a merchant fleet of 1,600 seagoing ships.
Addressing a press conference after the Sagar Samvad event in New Delhi, Sonowal said the National Shipping Board (NSB), established in 1958 and older than the ministry it advises, is tasked with ensuring that India’s shipping policy is formulated only after listening to the voices of those who sail, own, and fund the industry.
NSB is a statutory advisory body under the Merchant Shipping Act, 2025, that counsels the government on shipping policy, tonnage, seafarer welfare, and port-linked maritime development.
Sonowal also acknowledged the success of the Container Manufacturing Assistance Scheme worth Rs 10,000 crore, with global shipping major Maersk now ordering containers built on Indian soil.
The minister said India’s maritime sector has the potential to become a major engine of employment for the young workforce and position India as the world’s leading supplier of skilled seafarers.
“We are expanding quality training capacity, with steps taken to strengthen industry-led skilling, create wider employment pathways, address gender disparity and equip our workforce with skills for emerging segments such as cruise shipping and advanced shipbuilding,” he said.
A skilled and future-ready maritime workforce will be central to achieving the Maritime India Vision 2030 and building India’s shipbuilding capabilities under Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047, he added.
-with PTI inputs
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