1.2.3. Major Ports in India

The 13 major ports of India handle more than 95 per cent of our foreign trade by volume and 70 per cent by value. The major ports are Kandla, Mumbai, Jawaharlal Nehru (Nhava Sheva), Mormugao, New Mangalore, Kochi, Tuticorin, Chennai, Vishakhapatnam, Paradip, Haldia, Kolkata and Port Blair. Details of some of these ports are as follows-

1) Kandla: Kandla port was developed soon after independence to make up the loss of Karachi to Pakistan. It is a tidal port and is located at the eastern end of the Rann of Kachchh. It handles the exports and imports for Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Rajasthan and Gujarat. It handles crude oil, petroleum products, cotton, fertilizers, food grains, cement, sugar, edible oils, scrap, etc.

2) Mumbai: It is the biggest natural harbour on the west coast of India. The opening of Suez Canal in 1869 brought it much closer to the European countries. A new port Nhava Sheva has been developed near Mumbai port. It has decongested traffic at Mumbai port. It handles a large variety of cargo from Middle-East and European countries. It serves as a hub port in this region.

3) Mormugao: Mormugao port is an important port of Goa and handles the iron ore export from India. It is located on the entrance of the Zuari estuary. With the opening of Konkan Railway, its importance has been enhanced and it is working as a multi-commodity port.

4) New Mangalore: It is a new port developed about 9 km north of the old port. The port is well linked with Mumbai and Kanyakumari. The main items of cargo from this port are iron ore, manganese ore, fertilizers, tiles, cement, coffee, cashew nuts, forest products, food grains, etc.

5) Kochi: It is a natural port located along the coast of Kerala and is popularly known as “Queen of the Arabian Sea”. Kochi has sheltered backwater bay, and is open to traffic throughout the year. The main items of export and import are coir goods, copra, coconut oil, tea, rubber, spices, cashew kernels, sea food, chemical fertilizers, etc. The Kochi Oil Refinery receives crude oil from this port.

6) Tuticorin: It has been recently developed along the south-eastern coast of Tamil Nadu. It has an artificial deep sea harbour and is well connected with railways and roads. Main exports and imports are tea, spices, cotton textiles, hides and skins, edible oils, sugar, petroleum products, etc.

7) Chennai: It is the oldest artificial harbour on the east coast of India. It is often hit by cyclones in October and November, making the shipping difficult. It is not suited for large ships due to lesser depth of water. This port mainly handles petroleum products, fertilizers, iron ore, coal, edible oils, machinery, cotton, metals, etc.

8) Vishakhapatnam: It is the deepest, land-locked, protected and the best natural harbour of India. An outer harbour has been developed to handle iron ore and petroleum. It also has the shipbuilding and ship-repair industry. Its main imports and exports are petroleum, fertilizers, chemical, machinery, metals, iron ore, timber, leather goods and food grains.

9) Paradip: It is deep water and all weather port, located about 100 km east of Cuttack. It has the deepest harbour in the country. This port handles iron ore and coal along with some dry cargo. The port is well connected through rail and road with different parts of Orissa.

10) Kolkata-Haldia: It is situated along the Hugli River about 148 km away from sea shore. It is one of the leading ports of India. Its importance has slightly declined due to the development of Paradip and Vishakhapatnam ports. Kolkata is a truncated port and has two dock systems-Kidderpore Docks and Netaji Subhash docks. Recently in 1978, another port Haldia (90 km downstream from Kolkata) has been developed, for handling the bulk cargo, and to relieve pressure on the old port. The port handles petroleum, chemicals, edible oils, railway equipment, machinery, tea, sugar, gunnies, leather goods, lac, mica, scrap, etc.