Parliament Question: Port congestion

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF PORTS, SHIPPING AND WATERWAYS RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3678 ANSWERED ON 24.03.2026 PORT CONGESTION 3678. SMT. RAJANI ASHOKRAO PATIL: Will the Minister of PORTS, SHIPPING AND WATERWAYS be pleased to state: (a) whether Government has identified ports facing chronic congestion across the country; (b) the details of major and non-major ports experiencing capacity constraints, including berth occupancy and cargo dwell time; (c) the trends in average turnaround time of vessels at Indian ports over recent years, port- wise; (d) the impact of congestion and delays on logistics costs, supply chain efficiency and the competitiveness of Indian exports; and (e) whether port modernisation initiatives under programmes such as Sagarmala and port-led development have yielded measurable improvements and if not, the corrective steps proposed to address persistent bottlenecks? ANSWER MINISTER OF PORTS, SHIPPING AND WATERWAYS (SHRI SARBANANDA SONOWAL) (a) to(e) At present, no chronic congestion or capacity constraints have been reported at Major Ports.Ports other than Major Ports (OTMP) are under the administrative control of the respective State Governments and their development falls within the State’s jurisdiction and responsibility.The trends in average turnaround time of vessels at Major Ports in the last three yearsare placed at Annexure. Under the Sagarmala scheme, 24 port-modernization projects worth ₹1,033.43 crore were sanctioned out of which 17 projects costing ₹852.44 crore are completed and 7 projects worth ₹180.99 crore are under implementation. These projects created new and specialized berths, improved dredging, enhanced storage yards, strengthened firefighting systems, added solar capacity, and modernized handling facilities—resulting in greater operational efficiency, improved safety, better global competitiveness, enhanced connectivity, increased digitization, and livelihood benefits for coastal communities.Annexure Average Turnaround Time of Major Ports during 2022-23 to 2024-25 (in hours) Major Ports 2022-23 2023-24 2024-25 Deendayal Port Authority 77.28 54.24 58.56 Mumbai Port Authority 67.42 62.97 65.75 Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority 28.47 26 26.35 Mormugao Port Authority 61.47 65.61 69.68 New Mangalore Port Authority 43.09 40.44 40.37 Cochin Port Authority 33.41 33.4 32.41 VO Chidambaranar Port Authority 46.80 51.36 55.44 Chennai Port Authority 48.22 44.92 48.69 Kamarajar Port Limited 45.40 44.37 46.66 Visakhapatnam Port Authority 73.19 65.86 69.19 Paradip Port Authority 46.27 41.61 46.16 SMP – Kolkata Dock System 68.16 82.61 81.73 SMP- Haldia Dock Complex 50.10 50.12 46.79 Overall 52.9 48.06 49.5 *****