Setting up many domestic shipyards is urgent; India needs to attract potential Asian investors in Shipbuilding News 01/07/2026 Shipbuilding capacity is integral to the larger plan of easing and reducing logistics costs. Raising port capacity manifold and reducing the cargo turnaround time are complementary to this. Emphasising the maritime sector as an engine for employment and economic growth is a policy plank that aligns well with atmanirbharta (self-reliance). Recently, while commissioning three indigenously built naval ships in Kolkata, Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that India would not “remain merely a buyer in the defence sector”. He cited the induction of 33 ships and seven submarines into the Navy over the last decade, all but one built domestically. This includes the imposing INS Vikrant aircraft carrier and nuclear submarines like Arihant and Arighaat. While the Indian Navy currently operates a 135-strong warship fleet, 39 of them, including eight destroyers and 12 frigates, were built by state-run Mazagon Dock. An earlier plan was to expand the fleet to 250 by 2035. However, despite some progress made in recent years, that target looks tall. The policy thrust is not confined to rapidly expanding the naval fleet and indigenising warship manufacturing, but extends to accelerating the pace of commercial fleet development. The Union Budget 2025-26 unveiled a Rs 25,000-crore Maritime Development Fund to support domestic shipbuilding; the corpus may be enhanced to Rs 70,000 crore as need arises. At present, 60 large ships are under construction in the country, with an investment of `1.5 lakh crore. This is impressive by historical standards. Shipbuilding investments are presumed to have a multiplier of two in economic circulation and six in employment creation. Shipbuilding capacity is integral to the larger plan of easing and reducing logistics costs. Raising port capacity manifold and reducing the cargo turnaround time are complementary to this. Port-