NEW DELHI: As ports handled by the private sector witnessed a slowdown in shipments, government-owned major ports saw an increase in their share of cargo traffic for the first time in seven years.
India’s 32 prominent ports handled 1,080 million tonnes of cargo in 2015-16, compared to 1,052 million tonnes in the previous year as exports fell through the year and import remained muted due to the economic slowdown and a fall in the value of key commodities, led by oil and metals.
Data, however, showed the 12 major ports witnessed a 4.3% rise in cargo traffic, estimated at 606 million tonnes. The private sector players, which have an over 40% share, saw an under 1% rise. Cargo handled by them increased from 471 million tonnes to about 475 million tonnes during 2015-16. Sources said one of the major reasons behind this is the decline in import of coal because of increased domestic production.
Industry insiders said several initiatives, including greater monitoring had improved the efficiency of major ports. The revival of port sector is also evident from the trend of a reduction in average turn around time from 2.55 days in 2012-13 to 2.03 in 2015-16. The average output of ship berth per day has also increased from 11,800 tonnes to 13,809 tonnes during this period.
