India Launches Port Performance Index and Digital Upgrades To Boost Maritime Growth

India has launched the Logistics Port Performance Index (LPPI) for FY 2024-25 and 4 digital initiatives to boost governance, transparency and ease of doing business in the maritime sector.

The announcement regarding the same was made by the Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal, at the 37th Foundation Day event of the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority in Mumbai.

The LPPI is a national framework developed to improve and track the performance of Indian Ports and seeks to strengthen the country’s position in global trade and logistics.

The index will evaluate the ports across 3 cargo segments, including dry bulk, liquid bulk and container cargo, using indicators like volume of cargo handled, ship turnaround time, pre-berting waiting time, berth idle time, container dwell time, and ship berth day output.

The 4 digital initiatives, developed by the Directorate General of Shipping (DGS) aim to improve accountability, transparency and service delivery for seafarers and stakeholders.

Under this, a 24×7 Grievance Redressal Module has been launched under the e-Navik platform, a Ship Registration Module on the e-Samudra platform, a Medical Practitioner Module and a Unified Ship Recycling Credit Note Module.

The grievance redressal platform is a step by the government to ensure the welfare of Indian Seafarers. It will allow them to file grievances through several channels, like the e-Navik portal, toll-free helplines, WhatsApp and email services from anywhere in the world.

The digital ship registration module is a vital flagging reform to simplify vessel registration processes and align India’s maritime administration with international standards.

The Medical Practitioner Module will streamline the registration and monitoring of doctors authorised to certify seafarers to reduce the risk of fraudulent certifications.

A Unified Ship Recycling Portal for the Ship Recycling Credit scheme, which is part of the Rupees 70,000-crore maritime development package, was also revealed at the event.

This would enable ship owners recycling vessels at the Hong Kong Convention-compliant Indian yards to receive a credit note equal to 40% of the vessel’s scrap value, redeemable against new shipbuilding projects in the country.

Sarbanda Sonowal also mentioned major performers, including the Paradip Port Authority, which topped the Dry Bulk Cargo category by handling over 5 million tonnes, while Sikka Port and Terminals led the Liquid Bulk Cargo segment.

The highest-ranker in the container cargo category was Mundra Port, which handled over 0.5 million TEUs.

Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority came second among the major container ports.

In his speech, Sonowal also mentioned that India’s performance in global logistics rankings had improved significantly.

India jumped from 44th to 22nd place in the World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index in the International Shipments category.

Also, seven Indian ports were among the world’s top 100 ports in the World Bank’s Container Port Performance Index 2024.