India aims to handle 1-third of global seaborne trade by 2047
India just set a bold target: by 2047, it hopes to handle one-third of all global seaborne trade—up from about 10% today.
Announcing the plan at India Maritime Week 2025, Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said, "India currently handles about 10% of seaborne trade, and our goal is to triple it by 2047."
The government is backing this up with massive investments and new mega ports.
Port capacity nearly doubled in a decade
Over the past decade, India's port capacity has nearly doubled, and cargo handled has jumped from 972 million tons to nearly 1,600 million tons a year.
Inland waterways are booming too—cargo there soared from just under 7 million tons to more than 145 million tons annually.
At this year's Maritime Week in Mumbai, reps from 85 countries showed up and ₹10 lakh crore in new investments were announced.
Push for greener shipping
The government is putting ₹80 lakh crore into the maritime sector and launching a ₹69,725 crore package for shipbuilding. The aim: break into the world's top five shipbuilders by 2047.
There's also a push for greener shipping—think green corridors and methanol-powered vessels—to make growth sustainable for the long haul.