India is looking at relaxing its age old cabotage law to allow foreign ships to transport cargo between different ports along the country´s coast with some riders, Junior Shipping Minister Pon Radhakrishnan has said.
Radhakrishnan, however, said the Shipping Ministry will ¨examine¨ the possibility of relaxing the cabotage law in such a way that the existing stakeholders are not affected adversely.
¨Many foreign ships sail near empty to Tuticorin after dropping off goods in Gujarat. Using these ships will save a lot of money for the industry and for the country as well in terms of diesel subsidies,¨ said Prabhu Damodharan, secretary of Texpreneurs Forum.
Indian ship operators, however, say any relaxation in the laws will be unfair towards the domestic shipping industry. The relaxation of old cabotage law is expected to impact logistical costs of a whole range of industries.
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