The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways announced that the Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) marked 65 years of operations at a ceremony held at the International Cruise Terminal in Mumbai on October 2, 2026. Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal attended as chief guest and highlighted SCI's significant growth from its founding in 1961 as a liner shipping company with 19 vessels to its current status as a diversified maritime enterprise operating 58 vessels totaling 5.26 million deadweight tonnage (DWT).
The Minister emphasized SCI's crucial role in safeguarding India's energy and trade security, particularly noting its performance during the recent Strait of Hormuz crisis. He called on SCI to take a leading role in India's drive toward self-reliant, globally competitive shipbuilding and maritime capacity, framing a stronger national fleet as central to India's ambition of becoming a top shipbuilding and ship-owning nation by 2047 under the Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047.
SCI's operations now span multiple segments including crude and product tankers, bulk and container shipping, LPG and LNG carriers, offshore services, passenger and coastal transport, project cargo, ship management, and shipbuilding consultancy. The company is undertaking a fleet augmentation program backed by the government's expanded policy and financing support for the maritime sector, with proposed joint ventures involving Indian Oil's public sector undertakings and the Bharat Container Shipping Line to accelerate expansion toward MAKV 2047 targets.
Maharashtra's Minister for Fisheries and Ports, Nitesh Narayan Rane, who attended as Guest of Honour, credited SCI's enduring ties to Maharashtra and Mumbai, emphasizing that a strong shipping ecosystem remains essential to trade, employment and the broader growth of India's maritime economy. SCI's chairman and managing director, Capt. B.K. Tyagi, outlined the company's plans for building a larger, modern and globally competitive fleet in support of the national push to expand India's shipping capacity and tonnage.