Cargo volume declines 6% in major ports

At 43 million tonne (mn t), cargo volume at the 12 major ports in the country declined 6.2 percent in April from 46 mn t in the year-ago month.

The fall in cargo volume is mainly attributed to a decline in cargo handling at Mormugao Port in Goa as well as Mumbai Port.

During this period, only five major ports in the country registered a positive growth in cargo. Ennore Port and Paradip Port, both on the east coast of the country, have seen a rise in cargo volume with traffic at both ports rising by more than 40 per cent during the month.

Mormugao Port, which has been struggling to attract cargo after a ban on iron ore mining in Karnataka and Goa, recorded a 77 per cent fall in its cargo volume during April, while congested Mumbai Port reported a drop of more than 30 per cent.

Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust also posted a dip in cargo volume as it saw traffic fall by more than 6 per cent during the month. JNPT’s container volumes have been affected largely owing to a rise in the number of private ports on the west coast of the country.

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone operates the country’s largest private port in the country at Mundra in Gujarat and APM terminals operate the Pipavav Port in Gujarat, which lie close to JNPT and have been attracting cargo from the government-controlled port.

JNPT has also been struggling due to capacity constraints as the port currently operates at more than 100 per cent of its capacity.