Major ports handled 606.4 mt of cargo traffic during 2015-16

Major ports in the country handled 606.4 mt of cargo traffic during fiscal year 2015-16, as against 581.3 mt during 2014-15, recording a growth of 4.3 per cent. However, the combined traffic at major ports fell short of the 695.1 mt target set by the Ministry of Shipping (MoS) by 12.8 per cent. Kandla port handled the maximum traffic at 100 mt, followed by Paradip port at 76.4 mt and the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust at 64 mt. Mormugao port posted the maximum growth in traffic at 41.2 per cent, followed by V.O. Chidambaranar port at 13.7 per cent. Four ports witnessed negative growth – Chennai (-4.7 per cent), New Mangalore (-2.7 per cent), Visakhapatnam (-1.7 per cent) and Mumbai (0.9 per cent). In terms of commodities, petroleum-oil-lubricants accounted for the highest share in the total traffic at 32.3 per cent (196.1 mt), followed by coal at 21.5 per cent (130 mt) and containers at 20.3 per cent (123.11 mt).