Govt ports outpace private peers in cargo traffic growth, shows data

In a reversal of usual trends, central government-owned ports, also called major ports, have outpaced their private and state-government counterparts in cargo traffic growth to date this financial year, the data from the ministry of ports, shipping, and waterways shows.

During 2024-25, cargo handled at major ports increased by almost 5 per cent to 348.06 million tonnes (MT), driven by a 4.9 per cent increase in overseas cargo and 5.2 per cent increase in coastal cargo. This is a major uptick for the major ports after Covid.

On the other hand, private and state-government ports, also called