The Indian coastline is dotted with 12 major ports and about 200 non-major ports. A lion's share of the country's international trade - 95 per cent by volume and 70 per cent by value - is carried out through maritime transport. Major ports handle about three-fourths of the total sea-borne traffic.

Significantly, India's port sector has emerged the unsung hero in India's efforts to increase its global presence. The country's booming economy along with its foreign trade has given a tremendous boost to the sector, which has been instrumental in increasing India's share in world trade from 1.1 per cent in 2004 to 1.5 per cent in 2006. India has committed to spend US$ 100 billion over the next ten years on infrastructure projects, with US$ 10 billion to be spent just on the shipbuilding and port sectors within the next five years.

Port Traffic

According to the Indian Ports Association, the twelve major ports together handled a total of 519 million tones (mt) of cargo in 2007-08, an increase of 12 per cent over 463 mt handled in 2006-07.