A string of measures are underway to give a push to coastal shipping including efforts to tap global environment fund for creating additional capacities in the sector. Ministry of Shipping is working to build trade ties with neighbouring countries like Myanmar and Bangladesh and to give the sector an immediate thrust. “In the past some months the Ministry of Shipping has mounted a very aggressive policy enabling to end impasse in coastal shipping. In the past, there was a catch 22 situation with no demand and no vessels. Quick decisions in policy issues in the current political environment have given a push to the sector,” said Shipping Secretary Vishwapati Trivedi. He was speaking at a CII event in Delhi on Friday. Trivedi said the Shipping Ministry has undertaken a slew of steps, including efforts tap the World Bank-managed Global Environment Fund (GEF) to promote coastal shipping. He said at present India occupies 17th slot in global shipping capacity in EXIM trade but efforts were on to enhance it and the Ministry planned to boost coastal shipping four-fold by 2020.
PSUs can take a lead role in boosting coastal shipping, Trivedi said, adding,transportation through waterways resulted in reducing transport cost to one-third of that of the freight movement by Railways.The objective behind promoting coastal shipping is to decongest roads and reduce the overall transport cost. Ministry said that this will only be a cost effective measure but will also be environment friendly.India has a coastline over 7000 km long yet coastal shipping in the country is still in its infancy with a fleet of about 700 ships accounting for just about a million GT or 10 per cent of the total Indian tonnage.India’s EXIM cargo in terms of volume is approximately 611 million tonnes (MT) valued at about USD 279 billion.