New Delhi, Aug 6 : In a boost for domestic capabilities while reducing dependency on foreign entities in the shipping sector, there has been a consistent rise in Indian tonnage and now, 1,530 vessels are Indian-flagged with 13.7 million gross tonnage (GT), the Parliament was informed on Tuesday.

According to Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal, 1,041 vessels with 1.7 million GT are now engaged in coastal trade (as of June).

While 485 Indian-flagged vessels with 11.95 million GT now operate in overseas trade, four vessels of 45,604 GT have been acquired under Indian-controlled tonnage.

'Overall, 1,530 vessels are Indian-flagged with 13.7 Million GT. With the rise in Indian tonnage, there has been a shift in business preference towards Indian-flagged vessels over foreign-flagged ones,' the minister said in the Rajya Sabha.

The government has undertaken several initiatives to make the country 'Aatmanirbhar' in the shipping sector.

According to the minister, these efforts are part of a road map to enhance domestic capabilities and reduce dependency on foreign entities.

In 2015, the Centre approved the Financial Assistance Policy for Indian Shipyards, for grant of financial help.

Also, the subsidy scheme for the promotion of flagging of merchant ships in India was initiated in 2021 with a budget of Rs 1,624 crore to be disbursed over five years.

The Right of First Refusal (ROFR) scheme granted Indian-flagged vessels the priority to match the lowest bid offered by foreign-flagged vessels, thereby raising the demand for Indian flagged vessels.

'These initiatives have boosted the shipping sector's contribution to India's GDP growth. The Indian tonnage over the last decade has been consistently increasing,' said Sonowal.

Meanwhile, the volume of cargo transported through India's inland waterways took a six-fold leap -- from 18.07 million metric tonnes (MMT) in 2013-14 to 133.03 MMT in 2023-24.

As many as 106 new National Waterways were declared in 2016, with the number of operational waterways increasing from just three in 2013-14 to 26 by 2024.

The government aims to further boost cargo traffic, targeting 200 MMT by 2030 and 500 MMT by 2047.

/IANS