Rajya Sabha Passes Indian Ports Bill 2025, Sarbananda Sonowal Highlights Maritime Boost

The Rajya Sabha on Monday approved the Indian Ports Bill, 2025, a comprehensive legislative reform aimed at modernising and streamlining India’s port operations, replacing the nearly century-old Indian Ports Act of 1908. The bill seeks to enhance efficiency, international compliance, and coordination across central and state ports.

During the discussion in the upper house, Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal, described the new law as a “reformative milestone” that will unlock India’s maritime potential. He emphasised that the legislation aligns with the visionary policies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, enabling India to achieve greater prominence in global maritime trade.

The bill introduces mandatory adherence to international standards for Indian ports and strengthens disaster preparedness measures. It also establishes the Maritime Development Advisory Council, tasked with fostering coordination between central and coastal state governments to drive strategic growth in port operations.

Under the bill, coastal states will be empowered to form State Maritime Boards, ensuring transparent governance in 12 major and 200 minor and intermediate ports. This framework aims to enhance efficiency, reduce bottlenecks, improve turnaround times, and increase cargo handling capacity.

Key highlights of the bill include:

• Expansion of India’s maritime sector through modernized governance and operational reforms.

• Increase in cargo handling at major ports, reaching 855 million tonnes in 2024-25, up from 581 million tonnes in 2014-15, representing an 87% growth in capacity.

• Improved turnaround time for ships, achieving global standards of around 48 hours.

• Advanced container port performance indexing and streamlined port management.

• Significant growth in coastal shipping, with cargo movement increasing by over 100%, and inland waterways seeing a sevenfold rise.

Sonowal noted that the bill will not only enhance port efficiency but also strengthen public-private participation, infrastructure investment, and logistical capacity. The legislation is also expected to position India alongside leading maritime nations such as Singapore, the Netherlands, and EU member states.

Highlighting the strategic vision of PM Modi, Sonowal said the reforms will unlock India’s coastal potential and prepare the country to emerge as a major maritime power by 2047. He described the law as a critical component of India’s “Amritkal” infrastructure roadmap.

With the Rajya Sabha’s approval, the Indian Ports Bill, 2025, is now set to revolutionise the nation’s port sector, boosting operational efficiency, cargo handling, and India’s global maritime competitiveness.

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