Impact of Port Infrastructure on Economic Development With Special Reference to Major Ports in India

Abstract

Seaports are essential to develop maritime transport as they connect markets across nations and domestically, thus contributing to the economic development of the country. Investing in sea ports and improving its infrastructure, facilitates economic growth, particularly in a developing nation. Upgrading port infrastructure may facilitate multimodal transportation and coastal movement of cargo through sea which is considered as a very cost effective mode of transportation compared to other modes of transportation. All the twelve major ports are considered for the study. The aim of the study is to find out how the infrastructure in ports influences the throughput and operating revenue and also to find out, how the ports contribute to the economic development of the country. The author uses Pearson’s coefficient of correlation for finding out the relation between the number of berths, throughput and operating income. The outcome of the study indicates that the major ports infrastructure significantly contributes to the GDP of the country and also generates employment considerably.