In export push, govt steps in to raise container capacity amid shortage

Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal announces purchase of second-hand vessels

Concerned over the fallout of the Red Sea crisis and severe shortage of containers against the backdrop of a steep decline in merchandise exports in August, the Union government is pulling out all the stops to find a solution. To begin with, the government has devised a strategy aimed at boosting container supply and supporting exporters.  

An inter-ministerial meeting chaired by trade minister Piyush Goyal, on Thursday, decided that the state-owned Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) will start operating a large container ship and purchase five additional second-hand container vessels apart from reducing loading and handling cost of