Budget 2025: Shipbuilding gets big push from govt eyeing global trade

The Maritime Development Fund announced by the FM will have a corpus of Rs 25,000 cr; besides, tax breaks and easier infra credit access to shipbuilders aim to reinvigorate the shipbuilding industry

For a decade, there was a standing offer by the Indian government for a Rs 4,000-crore viability support to potential shipbuilding companies. The money, however, remained on the books, un-disbursed for lack of interest.  

 

Now, the government seems keen to make this change, as evinced in the Union Budget 2025, when finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman decided to take another shot at spurring shipbuilding in India.  

 

As India tries to expand the range of government capex support to sectors beyond roads, railways and telecom, the maritime sector has the potential to be a sizeable alternative and, within it, shipbuilding is expected