Rs 69,725 crore package strengthens shipbuilding industry, maritime financing in India
New Delhi, July 25
A comprehensive Rs 69,725 crore package has been approved to strengthen domestic shipbuilding capacity, maritime financing and skilling as part of measures to revamp India's shipbuilding industry, the government has said.
The package includes a Shipbuilding Financial Assistance Scheme with an outlay of Rs 24,736 crore to address cost disadvantages of Indian shipyards compared to global yards, Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal, said in Lok Sabha.
A Maritime Development Fund corpus of Rs 25,000 crore for providing long term financing support to shipbuilding and maritime sector comprising a Maritime Investment Fund of Rs 20,000 crore and an Interest Incentivisation Fund of Rs 5,000 crore is a key component of the package.
The government also approved a Shipbuilding Development Scheme (SbDS) with Rs 19,989 crore to expand output capacity to 4.5 million gross tonnage annually through greenfield clusters and brownfield expansion.
"These targets have been set to position India as a competitive global shipbuilding force in line with the vision contained in Maritime India Vision 2030 and Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047 documents," the statement from Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways said.
Policy reforms have also been undertaken to revamp the shipbuilding industry including implementation of classification of large vessels as infrastructure and demand aggregation.
Infrastructure status was notified for Indian‑flagged commercial vessels of 10,000 Gross Tonnage (GT) and above on September 19, 2025, and for vessels of 1,500 GT and above when constructed in India.
As part of demand aggregation, a fleet acquisition plan of over 400 vessels has been prepared which provides long term order visibility to the Indian shipyards.
The government has accorded in-principle approval for the development of three greenfield shipbuilding clusters at Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu under Shipbuilding Development Scheme (SbDS).
— IANS
Reader Comments
As someone who works in the shipping sector, this is long overdue. Indian yards have been struggling for decades. But I'm a bit skeptical about the 4.5 million GT target—infrastructure and skilled labor are major bottlenecks. Let's see how the greenfield clusters in Andhra, Gujarat, and TN actually shape up. Fingers crossed! 🤞
Great news for coastal states! Shipbuilding will boost local economies in Andhra and Gujarat. But I hope the package also includes training programs for our youth in maritime skills. We need more than just money—we need skilled workers to compete with China and South Korea. Skilling is the key!
The demand aggregation of 400 vessels is smart—long-term orders will give shipyards the confidence to invest. But ₹24,736 crore for financial assistance seems small compared to the subsidies China gives its yards. We need to be aggressive if we want to become a top 5 shipbuilding nation by 2030. Still, a good start! 🇮🇳
Finally, infrastructure status for Indian-flagged vessels! That will attract financing and lower costs for ship owners. But we also need to improve port efficiency and logistics—what's the point of building ships if our ports can't handle them quickly? Integrated development is the need of the hour. 🙏
Impressive numbers on paper, but implementation will be the real test. I recall past shipbuilding schemes that didn't yield results. The greenfield clusters need proper land acquisition, environmental clearances, and connectivity. Also, why no mention of Cochin or Mumbai yards which already have expertise? Hope this
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