100 new Indian ships planned to cut $75 billion freight bill

India’s plan to grow its shipping fleet: what happened?

India’s crude oil, gas, coal and urea mostly travel on foreign ships. Every voyage sends freight money abroad and leaves our trade dependent on others. The National Shipping Board used its first open dialogue to ask why Indian ships are few and what would make owning them viable.

• The NSB, reconstituted in May 2025, submitted its annual report for 2025-26 and subcommittee reports with policy advice.
• The Minister launched the board’s first official website.
• Panelists proposed a five-pillar roadmap: fiscal reform, assured cargo support, competitive financing, regulatory streamlining and ease of doing business.
• The Minister said port capacity is being quadrupled to 10,000 million tonnes a year by 2047.
• He noted that under the ₹10,000 crore Container Manufacturing Assistance Scheme, Maersk is now ordering containers built in India.

What is the National Shipping Board?

• A statutory advisory body first constituted in 1958, older than the Ministry it advises.
• It now works under the re-enacted Merchant Shipping Act, 2025 and new NSB Rules.
• It advises the government on shipping policy, tonnage, seafarer welfare and port-linked maritime development.
• Sagar Samvad means “ocean dialogue”; the board’s motto is “Wisdom in the Ocean, Progress in the Nation”.

Why are Indian-flagged ships costlier?

• Tax on ship imports and maintenance services.
• Tax deducted at seafarers’ wages.
• Tax on freight.
• Higher domestic capital costs that foreign competitors do not carry.
• Under the Right of First Refusal mechanism, Indian owners must still match foreign freight rates to win cargo.

What about seafarers?

• A session on the maritime labour force looked at India’s seafaring workforce, among the largest in the world.
• The board’s findings point to wage taxation, pension gaps and welfare gaps for Indian seafarers.
• The Labour Minister spoke of more training capacity, industry-led skilling, closing the gender gap and skills for cruise shipping and advanced shipbuilding.

Which constitutional entry covers shipping?

• Seventh Schedule, List I (Union List), Entry 25: maritime shipping and navigation, including shipping and navigation on tidal waters, and education and training for the mercantile marine.

What is in the five-pillar roadmap?

Why does India’s plan to grow its shipping fleet matter?

What are the challenges in India’s plan to grow its shipping fleet?

• Indian-flagged ships cost 16 to 20 per cent more to run than foreign ones.
• Right of First Refusal still forces Indian owners to match foreign rates.
• Seafarers face wage taxation and pension gaps.
• Gender disparity in maritime jobs.

What should be done next on India’s plan to grow its shipping fleet?

• Act on the five pillars, starting with tax and financing costs.
• Give Indian ships assured cargo partnerships for critical imports.
• Expand seafarer training and address welfare gaps.
• Link fleet growth with domestic shipbuilding and container manufacturing.

What can Prelims ask on India’s plan to grow its shipping fleet?

• National Shipping Board: statutory body, first constituted in 1958; now under the Merchant Shipping Act, 2025.
• Sagar Samvad: NSB’s dialogue platform; first held 25 Aug 2026.
• Container Manufacturing Assistance Scheme: ₹10,000 crore.
• Maritime shipping and navigation: Entry 25, List I.

How to write about India’s plan to grow its shipping fleet in Mains

Practice question (15 marks, 250 words): India pays a large freight bill to foreign shipping lines. What stops Indian tonnage from growing, and what reforms are needed?

• Intro: close to $75 billion freight paid abroad a year.
• Causes: 16 to 20 per cent cost gap from taxes and capital costs; ROFR rate matching.
• Reforms: five pillars.
• Link with ports (10,000 MTPA by 2047), shipbuilding, seafarers.
• Conclusion: MAKV 2047 top-five ship-owning goal.