India-Russia explore Northern Sea Route
The Government, through Joint Working Group meetings/bilateral meetings and Memorandum of Understanding/ letter of Intent among others, has engaged with maritime countries including Norway, Netherlands, Denmark, Italy, South Korea, Singapore, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Oman to explore avenues for possible collaboration.
The parties with interest in India were among the 93 countries and more than 100,000 delegates and stakeholders that took part in the India Maritime Week 2025 held Mumbai from 27–31 October 2025, said Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal in a written update to to the Lok Sabha on 13 Dec https://www.conexpoconagg.com/.
“The Government has been actively engaging with foreign Governments, multilateral organisations and global maritime industry partners for collaboration in ports, shipping and maritime logistics. These include partnerships for port modernisation, development of shipping infrastructure, green shipping initiatives, digitization and maritime skill development,” he said http://shipmin.gov.in.
Notable recent engagements include India- Russia partnership to explore Northern Sea Route, Eastern Maritime Corridor & training of Indian Seafarers in Polar Waters, Indo-Danish Centre of Excellence in Green Shipping and India-Singapore partnership for Green & Digital Shipping Corridor http://commerce.gov.in.
Further, Deendayal Port Authority (DPA) in the state of Gujarat has collaborated with Port of Rotterdam for setting up technically advanced, state of the art supply side facilities including storage, handling, transportation and dispatch facilities for green hydrogen/green ammonia and derivatives at DPA, Kandla https://www.bseindia.com/.
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is also allowed in port sector in India.
He pointed out that DP World, UAE, currently operates container terminals at various location such as Jawaharlal Nehru Port in Maharashtra, Cochin Port in Kerala, Chennai Port in Tamil Nadu. Further, DP World is also developing a container terminal at Tuna Tekra, Deendayal Port in state of Gujarat. Similarly, PSA Singapore operates terminals at Jawaharlal Nehru Port in Maharashtra https://www.nseindia.com/.
Key legislations that have been passed recently include:
The Merchant Shipping Act, 2025, to promote tonnage under the Indian flag
The Coastal Shipping Act, 2025, to simplify license regime for coastal vessels
The Indian Ports Act, 2025, for long-term planning & integrated development of ports
The Bills of Lading Act, 2025 and the Carriage of Goods by Sea Act, 2025 to eliminate outdated colonial-era laws
The Marine Aids to Navigation Act, 2021, and Inland Vessel Act, 2021, modernizing inland water transport, replacing outdated legislation to enhance safety, efficiency, and environmental protection
The Major Port Authorities Act, 2021 to enhance autonomy, provide greater flexibility, and attract private investment, replaced the Major Port Trust Act,
Various projects have been undertaken for technological, operational or capacity enhancement to strengthen the cargo handling at ports, coastal shipping, cruise tourism and fisheries etc. Projects worth more than Rs.40,000 crores to enhance the capacity and efficiency of Major Ports have been completed in the last 10 years.
Further, to strengthen digitalization, green shipping and maritime innovation across ports and waterways, several initiatives have been/are being undertaken as follows:
Digitalization efforts across ports and waterways are focused on standardizing procedures, reducing manual interventions, and improving information exchange between stakeholders. The One Nation One Port Process (ONOP) initiative is being undertaken to standardize documentation processes and re-engineer operational steps to lower transaction volumes and reduce cargo processing times. Other initiatives such as, the Maritime Single Window (Sagar Setu), e-Samudra, e-Pariksha, and Jalyan & Navic are strengthening IT systems, to increase operational efficiency in maritime sector.
Measures are being undertaken to support environmental objectives in maritime sector. “Harit Sagar” Green Port guidelines, launched in 2023 provide a framework to Indian ports for reducing carbon footprint. Other measures include adoption of alternate fuels, low/zero-emission equipment, and integration of renewable energy. Three ports are being developed as Green Hydrogen hub ports, and the Green Tug Transition Programme outlines a phased shift from conventional tug vessels to low-emission alternatives.
Further, the Government of India, approved a comprehensive package of Rs.69,725 crore to revitalize the country’s shipbuilding and maritime ecosystem. The initiative adopts a four-pillar approach aimed at developing a globally competitive, technologically advanced, and sustainable maritime sector. These include Shipbuilding Financial Assistance Scheme (SBFAS), Maritime Development Fund (MDF), Shipbuilding Development Scheme (SbDS) and policy, technology, and institutional reforms. National Shipbuilding Mission (NSbM) will serve as the nodal body for coordination, implementation, and monitoring of all initiatives under this framework, said the Minister. Fiinews.com
