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Waterways & Ports






๐Ÿ“Œ Topic 04 of 6 ยท Chapter 09 ยท Transport, Communication & Trade

Waterways & Major Ports of India

JNPT, Mundra, Visakhapatnam, Sagarmala project โ€” complete notes for UPSC & PSC exams.

๐Ÿšข Major Ports of India

PortStateKey Feature
JNPT (Jawaharlal Nehru Port)MaharashtraLargest container port; handles ~55% of container traffic; also called Nhava Sheva
Mundra PortGujaratLargest port by cargo volume; private (Adani Group)
Kandla PortGujaratLargest major port by cargo; free trade zone; first SEZ
Mumbai PortMaharashtraNatural harbour; handles petroleum products
Chennai PortTamil NaduOldest artificial port; 2nd largest container port
Visakhapatnam PortAndhra PradeshDeepest landlocked port; largest iron ore exporter
Kolkata PortWest BengalOldest port; riverine port on Hooghly; includes Haldia dock
Kochi PortKeralaNatural harbour; handles spices, petroleum
Paradip PortOdishaMajor port; handles iron ore, coal
Ennore PortTamil NaduFirst corporate port in India; near Chennai

๐Ÿšข Inland Waterways

  • India has 111 National Waterways (NW Act 2016)
  • IWAI (Inland Waterways Authority of India) โ€” established 1986
  • NW-1 = Ganga (Allahabad to Haldia) = 1,620 km = longest
  • NW-3 = Kerala backwaters = most developed
  • Sagarmala Project = 2015 = port-led development = 600+ projects
โญ Key Facts โ€” Ports:
โ€ข JNPT = largest container port = Maharashtra
โ€ข Mundra = largest by cargo volume = Gujarat = private (Adani)
โ€ข Visakhapatnam = deepest landlocked port
โ€ข Kolkata = oldest port in India (riverine)
โ€ข Chennai = oldest artificial port in India