Economic Policy

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 CBS LINE

Volume 3.9 

MASSIVE BOOST FOR INDIA’S MARITIME INDUSTRY



 The Indian government is set to announce a 70000-crore package to strengthen domestic ship building and port linked infrastructure to push India into the top 10 countries globally both in ship building and ship ownership. This initiative create a robust domestic maritime ecosystem for India by reducing dependency on foreign ships and tackle the supply chain interruptions. The package have mainly four elements - Shipbuilding Financial Assistance Scheme to provide financial aid to shipbuilders, setting up a Maritime Development Fund, capacity creation for developing greenfield clusters and expansion of existing hubs. The maritime development fund allows long term and low-cost financing. The programme could play a key role in boosting employment, potentially creating around two crore direct and indirect jobs, highlighting its socio-economic impact. Recent MoU for clusters in Tamil Nadu, and upcoming agreements in Gujarat, reflect active steps toward implementing these plans. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s participation in the ‘Samudra se Samriddhi’ event and his inauguration of maritime projects worth over Rs 34,200 crore highlight strong background which is likely to accelerate this project execution. 

Apart from this Union Minister Shantanu Thakur has outlined targets to capture 5% of the global shipbuilding market by 2030. The government’s vision also emphasizes technological innovation and sustainability. Automation, digital twin technology, and green shipbuilding innovations, along with a commitment to power at least 30% of India’s shipping fleet with clean fuels by 2047, highlight the shift toward environmentally responsible growth. Policy measures, including the National Shipbuilding Policy, skill development for 50,000 workers, and research in autonomous vessels, indicate a long-term, systematic approach to sectoral growth. The integration with the PM Gati Shakti multimodal connectivity framework will enable coastal industrial clusters near shipyards to cut costs and improve supply chains and to build a robust maritime sector. By 2030,the sector aims to connect shipbuilding hubs in Gujarat, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh with rail and road networks.


LAND DIGITIZATION – A TRANSFORMATIVE POLICY ACTION


In the context of ‘next generation reforms’ Indian government is framing an extensive and consolidated electronic database of land records which clearly specify the ownership rights across urban and rural India. This digital platform backed by cadastral maps, integrate the land records across India which are under various departments into a unified digital system. The rural land digitization is in the final stage as 379.29 million records, about 99.8% of available rural records are digitized. The remaining lapses are in the northeast region and in Ladakh. Urban land digitization is yet to be completed as reliable and available records are only completed in Gujarat, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu. Top bridge this gap ‘Naksha’ –an initiative is in progress about 160 cities aiming to collect and digitize urban records. This exercise is expected to be completed within six months, after which the programme will be expanded across the rest of urban India. 

Land digitization upgrades India’s economic efficiency, legal clarity and investment environment. This system enhance legal security for vulnerable land holders specially farmers, tribal communities and urban poor from unfair treatment and bias. A digitized land records can attract investments. It enables high investments in infrastructure projects. Access to real-time data on land ownership and usage can help policymakers make informed decisions on agriculture, housing, industry, and ecological conservation, while also smoothing the way for land pooling, acquisitions, and urban planning. Verified land records can help farmers and small landowners to access formal credit, boosting rural income and fostering entrepreneurship. At the same time, a digital land registry simplifies property tax collection, allowing urban authorities to increase revenue and improve public infrastructure and services. 

This reform has a critical role in transforming India into a manufacturing and logistics powerhouse. Availability of clear land records can be used to overcome the constraints which India currently facing in setting up factories and special economic zones. The efficiency in the reform will reduce the entry barriers and thereby increasing foreign and domestic investments and substantial job creation across various sectors.


Dona Vincent
Econometrics and Financial Technology


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