How Vizhinjam is changing India's shipping game

Speaking at the India Today Conclave – South 2026, experts highlighted how Vizhinjam International Seaport is changing India’s position in global shipping by allowing some of the world’s largest container vessels to call directly at an Indian port. Sreekumar K. Nair, CEO of Vizhinjam International Seaport, said the port’s location near the East-West Global Maritime Highway gives it a major advantage. “Vizhinjam, today, is literally India's gateway to the world,” Nair said, pointing to its nearly 20-metre natural draught and location just around 10 nautical miles from the global shipping route. The port has already received several ultra-large container vessels, with Nair saying seven or eight such vessels had called at Vizhinjam in the previous month. The shift could also significantly cut shipping time for Indian exporters and importers. Nair recalled that consignments from Trivandrum to Jebel Ali in Dubai took around 42 days three decades ago. “Today, Vizhinjam-Jebel Ali direct sailing time is five days,” he said. Lakshman Radhakrishnan, former chairman of JNPT, said Vizhinjam could also help India save $80-$100 per container by reducing dependence on foreign transshipment hubs. The challenge now is to build the logistics and industrial ecosystem around the port so that its shipping advantage translates into wider economic gains.