India has a very long coastline that measures 7,516.6 km in length. This coastline has all the kind of terrains that you would expect on a seashore. It includes Sandy Beaches, Rocky Coasts, Muddy Flats and Marshy Coasts. These terrains are spread across 9 states that are Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, and West Bengal. These states are home cities that have served as seaports for hundreds of years.
Specifically speaking seaports are the places located at seashores, which are a hub for transport and business by the means of seawater. Basically, India has 13 major seaports out of which 12 are owned by Government and 1 is corporate. These seaports have solidified India’s economy by means of sea transport. So here is a list of 12 Popular and Major Sea Ports in India.
1. Kandla Port
Kandla port is located in the state of Gujarat and it is on the Gulf of Kutch. It is one of the major seaports and has handled 72,225 million tonnes of cargo in the economic year 2008-2009 which was 13.6 percent of whole countries share. Kandla port is 430 nautical miles away from the port of Mumbai and was constructed in the 1950s for purpose of trade with the western world. Kandla port is known to import products like petroleum, chemicals, and iron from western countries and export grains, salt and textiles from India to the other nations of the world.
2.Nhava Sheva
Nhava Sheva is located in the state of Maharashtra and it is built on the Arabian Sea. It is also known by the name of Jawahar Lal Nehru port. It has hosted 56.43 million tons of cargo in the economic year of 2010- 2011. It has ranked 31st in the top 100 Container Ports on the planet earth. Its construction was completed on 26 May 1989 and is known to import products like machinery, vegetable oils, and chemicals from western countries and exports textiles, carpets, boneless meat from India to the other nations of the world.
3.Mumbai Port
As the name says it Mumbai port is located in Mumbai, Maharashtra. It has an area of 400 square kilometers (150 sq mi) and it hosted 62.82 million tonnes of cargo in the economic year 2017-2018. It is one of the largest and oldest seaports in India and was built in the 1870s. It has 63 berths which are managed by 7000 employees. Over the years it was in control of Maratha, Portuguese and British navy but known it is used for transport of Liquid chemicals, Crude and petroleum products.
4.Mormugao Port
Mormugao port is located in Goa and it is the main seaport of the state. It is located in the south Goa and was commissioned in 1885 making it one of the oldest seaports in India. It has 11 berths which are operated by 2600 employees. Over the years it has become one of the most popular attractions of Goa for many filmmakers. In the economic year of 2011-2012, it transported 54.50 million metric tonnes of iron ore. 90 percent of it was exported to China.
5. Panambur Port
Panambur port is located in Mangalore in the state of Karnataka and is also known as New Mangaluru Port. It has transferred 36.5 million tonnes of cargo in the economic year of 2014-2015. It is was established in 1974 and is the seventh-largest port in India. It has a total of 17 berths for shipping of cargo. Panambur port is known to export manganese, granite stones, coffee, and cashew and it is known to import timber logs, LPG, and petroleum products. It is one of the most important ports on the Arabian sea.
6. Cochin Port
As its name says Cochin port is located in Cochin which is the capital city of Kerala. In the economic year of 2015-2016, it transferred cargo approximately worth of ₹ 5,103.5 million which weighted near 22.10 million tonnes. It has a total of 13 berths for cargo transfer making it one of the largest ports built on the Arabian Sea. The thing that makes this port really special are facilities Cochin Shipyard, Kochi Refineries, and Kochi Marina. It is also one of the oldest ports and was built in the year 1928.
7. Port Blair
Port Blair is another major port and it is the capital of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. There are total 23 small ports on Andaman and Nicobar Islands and it is the major one of them, which connects all of them with each other and all of them with the Indian mainland too. Port Blair isn’t oriented mainly for cargo business but it mainly used for travel and Andaman Island is a good tourist spot it is used a lot.
8. Tuticorin Port
Tuticorin Port is located in a city called as Thoothukudi, which is also known as Pearl City and is located in the state Tamil Nadu. It is a very large seaport with 13 berths and an area of 2150 acres (870.75 hectares). In the economic year of 2012 to 2013, it generated annual revenue of 3878.0 million INR. It was established in 1974 and from then it has become one of the main ports on the Bay of Bengal. Its major imports are rock phosphate, petroleum products, petroleum coke, and edible oils and major exports are sugar, granite, and limonite ore.
9. Chennai Port
Chennai is the capital city of Tamil Nadu and has the largest seaport of the state known as Chennai Port and also called as Madras Port. It is built on the Bay of Bengal and was established in 1881. It has an area of 407.51 ha (1,007.0 acres) and has 26 berths which are managed by more than 8000 employees. It generated annual revenue of ₹890.4 crore in the economic year of 2007 to 2008. It is one of the busiest ports in India and its major exports are Iron ore, leather, cotton textiles, and major imports are Wheat, raw cotton, machinery, iron & steel.
10. Vizag Port
Vizag port is also known as Vishakhapatnam port and is located in the state of Andhra Pradesh. It was established in 1933 and currently has 24 berths. In the economic year 2017 to 2018, it transferred 63.53 million tonnes. This port is located between Chennai and Kolkata and thus connects the two of them. Vishakhapatnam port is mostly known to handle iron ore, manganese ore, and steel products.
11. Paradip Port
Paradip Port is located in the Jagatsinghpur district of the state of Orissa. It is located at a spot where the Mahanadi river meets the Bay of Bengal. It was opened in 1966 and has 20 berths which are managed by 700 employees. It hosted 102.01 million tons of cargo in the economic year 2017-2018 and it comes between Vishakhapatnam port and Kolkata port. Currently, it is managed by Paradip Port Trust (PPT), which is a government organization.
12. Haldia Port
Haldia Port is located in Kolkata, which is the capital city of West Bengal. It has hosted 40.496 million tonnes of cargo in the economic year of 2017-2018 and this task was carried out with the help of 12 berths. It was established in the year 1967. It is built at a place where Haldi river meets the Hoogli river. This port is mainly known for the transfer of chemicals, petrochemicals, and oils.
