Union Minister Piyush Goyal recently emphasised the crucial role of ports, shipping, and logistics in driving India's economic growth. Speaking at the 12th Biennial International Conference on Ports, Shipping & Logistics 2025 in Mumbai, Goyal underscored these sectors as the lifelines of India's economy, facilitating trade and connecting global opportunities with the country.

He highlighted India's vast potential in shipbuilding and maritime trade, noting that the government is actively exploring strategies to promote the sector.

Goyal pointed out that India has doubled its port capacity over the past decade and significantly reduced ship turnaround times, which is a testament to the country's strategic advantage with its 7,500 km coastline.

However, he stressed the need to further strengthen the logistics ecosystem to accommodate growing trade volumes, as 95% of India's trade passes through ports.

The Minister encouraged industry stakeholders to provide recommendations on making the flagging of vessels in India more attractive, as the country currently lacks sufficient flagged vessels to fully leverage WTO regulations allowing cabotage.

To enhance the logistics system, Goyal called for more industry-led innovations to develop a more integrated framework, building on the Unified Logistics Interface Platform (ULIP) introduced to streamline operations. He also advocated for a hybrid training model to meet the increasing demand for skilled seafarers. Key areas identified for improvement include container ownership, container manufacturing, faster export speeds, and easing congestion at ports.

Amidst global trade uncertainties, Goyal expressed confidence in India's economic resilience, positioning the nation as a beacon of stability with maritime trade and logistics driving long-term prosperity under the vision of a "Viksit Bharat".

ANI