Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal on Tuesday, 3 November 2026, unveiled a ₹1,500 crore development plan for the Puri International Cruise Terminal, to be executed by the Paradip Port Authority (PPA) in partnership with the Odisha government, according to an official statement from the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways. The announcement was made during a Parliamentary Consultative Committee meeting held in Puri.

Cruise Bharat Mission and the 1 Million Passenger Target

At the heart of the announcement is the government's Cruise Bharat Mission, launched in September 2024, which aims to attract one million sea cruise passengers and generate 4,00,000 jobs by March 2029. India's cruise sector has already shown sharp momentum: in the 2025-26 fiscal year, the country recorded 4,62,661 ocean cruise passengers and 212 vessel calls — a 5.5-fold rise in passenger traffic and a 2.1-fold rise in vessel calls since 2013-14.

The Puri terminal is positioned as a flagship node in this cruise expansion, capitalising on Odisha's coastal geography and its proximity to established pilgrimage and tourism circuits.

Coastal Cargo Promotion Scheme: Doubling Freight Share by 2047

Sonowal also outlined ambitions for India's broader maritime freight network. The government is targeting a doubling of coastal and inland waterway shipping's share in India's overall freight movement — from six per cent to 12 per cent by 2047 — through the Coastal Cargo Promotion Scheme, announced in the 2026-27 Union Budget.

The scheme will offer financial incentives to cargo owners, coastal vessel operators, and multimodal transport operators who move goods via combinations of ship, rail, and road. Together, the Coastal Cargo Promotion Scheme and the Cruise Bharat Mission are expected to create more than 5,60,000 jobs and eliminate 16 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions, according to official figures.

India's Maritime Growth: 140% Rise in Coastal Cargo

'In the last 12 years under PM Narendra Modi, India's maritime sector has undergone massive transformations,' Sonowal said. He pointed to coastal cargo volumes surging from 74 million metric tonnes to 177 million metric tonnes over that period — a growth of approximately 140 per cent.

He underlined India's structural advantage: a coastline of more than 11,000 km, which he described as a 'natural advantage for moving freight over long distances more cleanly.' This comes amid a broader global push to shift freight from road to sea-and-rail corridors to cut emissions.

Odisha's National Waterway No. 5 and River Cruise Network

The Minister also highlighted the development of National Waterway No. 5 in Odisha, estimated to cost more than ₹13,000 crore. The waterway is designed to link the state's industrial and mining centres — including Talcher and Kalinganagar — with east coast ports, potentially unlocking significant logistics efficiencies for Odisha's minerals and steel sectors.

On river cruising, Sonowal noted that 20 river cruise circuits across 16 National Waterways are already operational, with 51 more identified for phased development. Currently, 143 river cruise terminals and landing points are functional across the country.

What Comes Next

With the Paradip Port Authority tasked as the executing agency for the Puri terminal and the Odisha government as a co-partner, implementation timelines and tendering details are awaited. The broader maritime push — spanning cruise infrastructure, coastal freight incentives, and waterway development — signals the Centre's intent to position India's coastline as a serious economic corridor ahead of the 2047 Viksit Bharat target.