MoPSW notifies on the Major and Minor ports on PPP Model in India
NEW DELHI : Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Shri Sarbananda Sonowal in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha said that, there are 12 Major Ports wholly-owned by the Government of India and governed by the provisions of the Major Port Authorities Act, 2021. These are Deendayal Port, Mumbai Port, Jawaharlal Nehru Port, Mormugao Port, New Mangalore Port, Cochin Port, V.O. Chidambaranar Port, Chennai Port, Kamarajar Port, Visakhapatnam Port, Paradip Port and Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port.
Private Sector Participation has been allowed in the Major Ports for specific projects/berths/terminals on Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) basis through concession agreement for a fixed tenure by way of globally open competitive bidding process on revenue share/royalty between the Major Port Authority and the concessionaire. After the expiry of the concession period, the asset is handed over to the Major Port Authority. There are 213 non-major ports managed by and under the control of the respective State Maritime Board / State Government. The Union Cabinet has approved the setting up of Major Port at Vadhavan, near Dahanu, in Maharashtra on 19.06.2024 with a total project cost of ₹76,220 crore where major portion is on PPP mode. The Hon’ble Prime Minister of India has laid the foundation stone of the project in Maharashtra on 30.08.2024.
The capacity utilisation in Indian ports was 57% in the FY 2023-24. The details of cargo handling capacity in Major Ports during the last 3 years are given below:
| Major Port | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 |
| Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port | 92.77 | 92.77 | 93.02 |
| Paradip Port | 289.75 | 289.75 | 289.75 |
| Visakhapatnam Port | 134.18 | 143.68 | 148.18 |
| Kamarajar Port | 91.00 | 91.00 | 94.00 |
| Chennai Port | 135.00 | 136.00 | 136.00 |
| V.O. Chidambaranar Port | 111.46 | 111.46 | 111.46 |
| Cochin Port | 78.60 | 79.90 | 79.90 |
| New Mangalore Port | 108.96 | 114.96 | 114.96 |
| Mormugao Port | 63.40 | 63.40 | 63.40 |
| Mumbai Port | 84.00 | 84.00 | 84.00 |
| Jawaharlal Nehru Port | 141.37 | 141.37 | 145.87 |
| Deendayal Port | 267.10 | 269.10 | 269.32 |
| Total | 1597.59 | 1617.39 | 1629.86 |
The details of cargo handled by Major Ports during the last 3 years are given below:
(Million Tonnes Per Annum)
| Major Port | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 |
| Deendayal Port | 127.10 | 137.56 | 132.37 |
| Mumbai Port | 59.89 | 63.61 | 67.26 |
| Jawaharlal Nehru Port | 76.00 | 83.86 | 85.82 |
| Mormugao Port | 18.46 | 17.33 | 20.62 |
| New Mangalore Port | 39.30 | 41.42 | 45.71 |
| Cochin Port | 34.55 | 35.26 | 36.32 |
| V.O. Chidambaranar Port | 34.12 | 38.04 | 41.40 |
| Chennai Port | 48.56 | 48.95 | 51.60 |
| Kamarajar Port | 38.74 | 43.51 | 45.28 |
| Visakhapatnam Port | 69.03 | 73.75 | 81.09 |
| Paradip Port | 116.13 | 135.36 | 145.38 |
| Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port | 58.18 | 65.66 | 66.39 |
| Total | 720.05 | 784.31 | 819.23 |
No Major Port in the country has been privatised as the ownership of the land and waterfront remains with the respective Government of India.