Cargo traffic at major ports rises 5% in April-Sept

Major ports in the country witnessed a 5.12 % rise in cargo traffic to 343.26 million tonnes (MT) in the April-September period of the ongoing financial year.

"The major ports in India have recorded a growth of 5.12 per cent and together handled 343.26 MT of cargo during April-September, 2018 as against 326.54 MT handled during the corresponding period of previous year," the shipping ministry said in a statement Thursday.

Nine ports, including Paradip, Visakhapatnam and Kamarajar, registered positive growth in traffic during the reported period, the statement added.

The highest growth of 19.66 per cent was registered by Kamarajar Port, followed by Cochin at 11.51 per cent, Paradip at 11.12 per cent, Haldia at 10.07 per cent and Deendayal at 10.03 per cent, it said.

During the period under review, Deendayal (Kandla) Port handled the highest volume of traffic at 58.63 MT, followed by Paradip, JNPT and Visakhapatnam, among others.