The International Shipbuilding Conference convened senior government officials, naval leadership, shipyard heads, financiers, insurers and global maritime stakeholders to outline India’s pathway towards becoming one of the world’s top five shipbuilding nations by 2047.
Delivering the keynote address on “Shaping a Globally Competitive and Sustainable Shipbuilding Ecosystem: India’s Path Forward,” Shyam Jagannathan, IAS, Director General of the Directorate General of Shipping, Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Government of India, set out a strategic and regulatory roadmap for maritime growth.
Highlighting that India is now a $4.19 trillion economy and the world’s fourth largest, he noted that 95% of India’s trade by volume and 70% by value moves by sea — underscoring shipbuilding as central to economic security and strategic resilience.
Referring to geopolitical disruptions in the Red Sea and Black Sea regions and the reconfiguration of global trade routes, he emphasised the urgency of strengthening domestic shipbuilding to secure supply chains and enhance strategic autonomy. Under Maritime India Vision 2030 and Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047, India aims to enter the top 10 shipbuilding nations by 2030 and the top five by 2047, scaling annual production while generating large-scale employment.
Shri Jagannathan detailed the government’s four-pillar approach comprising the Shipbuilding Financial Assistance Scheme, the Shipbuilding Development Scheme, the Maritime Development Fund and comprehensive legal and process reforms, backed by a ₹69,725 crore policy framework. He highlighted the transformative impact of the Merchant Shipping Act, 2025 and the Coastal Shipping Act, 2025 in modernising maritime governance, streamlining vessel registration and promoting Indian-flagged tonnage.
He also pointed to green vessel incentives, ship recycling reforms and opportunities emerging from GIFT City as a competitive ship leasing and maritime finance hub.
Industry Calls for Long-Term Policy Stability
In a special address on “Shipbuilding as a Strategic Driver of India’s Maritime Vision,” Arjun Chowgule, Managing Director, Chowgule Group, stressed that shipbuilding must be viewed as a strategic enabler of trade security, naval strength and industrial self-reliance. He called for long-term policy visibility and stronger public-private collaboration to ensure global competitiveness.
Earlier, Sudhanshu Vats, Senior Vice President of the Bombay Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Managing Director of Pidilite Industries, welcomed delegates and reaffirmed the Chamber’s longstanding engagement with the maritime sector.
Setting the thematic tone, Rajiv Jalota, Former Chairman of the Mumbai Port Authority and former DG Shipping, described shipbuilding as sitting at the intersection of trade competitiveness, energy security, national security, technological leadership and climate responsibility.
He identified three global forces shaping the next shipbuilding cycle — fleet renewal, decarbonisation and geopolitical resilience — and stressed that green shipbuilding must be approached as a full ecosystem spanning engines, fuel systems, fabrication, digital planning, classification, repair capacity and skilled manpower. Stable multi-year policy support, industrial-scale production, innovative financing and demand visibility, he said, will be critical to achieving the 2047 ambition.
Financing and Technology at the Forefront
Manish Sharma, Partner and Leader – Infrastructure, Transport and Logistics at PwC India, presented findings from an industry survey, highlighting supply-side constraints, financing gaps and the need for cluster-based expansion strategies.
A session on “Shipbuilding in a Shifting World: India’s Role in the Indo-Pacific” was moderated by Mohanlal Pillai, CEO of Mech Marine Engineers. The panel featured Vice Admiral Ankur Sharma, Admiral Superintendent of Naval Dockyard Mumbai; Vishal Kanwar, Partner at PwC India; and Sapna Dipu of Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders, examining shipbuilding as a pillar of maritime security, Indo-Pacific trade integration and naval collaboration.
The subsequent session on financing shipyards and infrastructure, moderated by K. Mukundan of the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund, underscored the importance of blended finance structures, PPP models, insurance-backed risk mitigation and green finance tools in enabling capacity expansion.
A special address on sustainable maritime collaboration was delivered by Daiyu Kurachi of NYK Line, who shared insights into Japan’s green shipping initiatives and potential avenues for India–Japan cooperation.
Fleet Expansion and Marine Insurance in Focus
A key highlight was the panel on “Financing Fleet Expansion: Meeting Global & Domestic Shipping Demand,” chaired by Capt. B. K. Tyagi, Chairman and Managing Director of Shipping Corporation of India, and moderated by Anil Radhakrishnan of GMR Enterprises.
Panellists including Anil Devli of the Indian National Shipowners’ Association, Pallavi Raje of Standard Chartered Bank and Pravin Kirolikar of Yeoman Marine Services explored innovative ship leasing and bareboat charter models, financing mechanisms for LNG, methanol and hydrogen-powered vessels, and cargo-backed long-term contracts as risk mitigation tools — with particular emphasis on the growing role of GIFT City in maritime finance.
Girija Subramanian, Chairman-cum-Managing Director of The New India Assurance Co. Ltd., highlighted the evolving role of marine insurance in supporting fleet modernisation and mitigating emerging risks in a dynamic global shipping environment.
Building Human Capital and State-Level Clusters
The session on building human capital was chaired by Dr. (Mrs.) Malini V. Shankar, Vice Chancellor of Indian Maritime University, focusing on advanced skills development, industry–academia partnerships and strengthening India’s maritime talent pipeline.
The valedictory session spotlighted the role of state maritime boards and industrial clusters in anchoring India’s shipbuilding ambitions, with participation from the Gujarat Maritime Board, Andhra Pradesh Maritime Board, Guidance Tamil Nadu and the Maharashtra Maritime Board.
The summit concluded with a strong call for coordinated action across policy, finance, technology and skills development. Delegates emphasised that by leveraging reform momentum, strategic location and industrial capability, India can build a resilient, green and globally competitive shipbuilding ecosystem — positioning itself firmly among the world’s top five shipbuilding nations by 2047.
