The Union Cabinet has approved a ₹10,000 crore Container Manufacturing Promotion Scheme (CMPS) to expand India’s annual container manufacturing capacity nearly ten-fold to 7.5 lakh TEUs, reduce import dependence and strengthen the country’s maritime logistics supply chain.
The scheme, announced in the Union Budget 2026-27, will run from FY28 to FY40, with three years for setting up manufacturing facilities and ten years of production support. It will support both greenfield projects and the expansion of existing manufacturing units.
The initiative aims to build a globally competitive container manufacturing ecosystem as India’s trade volumes and demand for shipping capacity increase.
India’s annual container manufacturing capacity currently stands at around 70,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), while container traffic is projected to rise from approximately 24 million TEUs in 2024 to 175 million TEUs by 2047, according to the government.
The widening gap between future demand and domestic manufacturing capacity makes local production a strategic priority for the country’s ports, exporters and shipping companies.
₹8,891 crore earmarked for production support
The scheme allocates ₹8,891 crore for operational expenditure assistance, the largest component of the total outlay. The support will be provided for containers manufactured to global shipping standards and sold by eligible manufacturers, helping them bridge the cost gap with imported products.
Domestic content requirements will progressively increase from 70% to 90%, encouraging manufacturers to source more materials and components from Indian suppliers.
Another ₹859 crore has been allocated for interest subvention, providing assistance at 3% a year on eligible term loans. This will cover greenfield manufacturing plants with an annual capacity of at least 1 lakh TEUs and brownfield expansions adding at least 25,000 TEUs of capacity.
The scheme also earmarks ₹150 crore for testing and certification infrastructure, including common facilities for dynamic longitudinal impact testing. This is intended to reduce dependence on overseas testing facilities.
A further ₹100 crore will go towards scheme management, monitoring and capacity building.
Eligible manufacturers will also receive support to lease land at major ports at 25% of the notified rate, potentially improving access to port-linked industrial infrastructure.
Government projects ₹75,000 crore economic output
The government expects the scheme to generate approximately ₹75,000 crore in economic output by FY40, more than seven times the planned government support.
It is also projected to create around 3,000 direct jobs and more than 50,000 indirect jobs across steel, components, logistics and other supporting industries.
The expansion could create demand for specialised steel, corner castings, wooden frames, paints and other container manufacturing inputs, supporting the development of domestic ancillary industries.
Demand is expected to be supported by the replacement of the global container fleet, the proposed Bharat Container Shipping Line and new port projects, including Vadhavan and Galathea Bay.
An inter-ministerial steering committee chaired by the Secretary of the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways will approve the scheme guidelines and sanction assistance.
Maritime supply chain gains strategic importance
Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal said the scheme would strengthen the domestic manufacturing ecosystem and reduce reliance on imported containers.
“Containers are the backbone of our trade. By making them in India, we strengthen the maritime logistics supply chain on which our ports, our exporters and our shipping lines depend,” Sonowal said.
For India, expanding domestic container production is not merely a manufacturing initiative. It could also reduce exposure to overseas supply disruptions and improve the availability of containers as export and import volumes rise.
The scheme’s success will depend on manufacturers establishing capacity at scale, achieving competitive production costs and meeting international quality standards. Raising domestic content to 90% will also require a reliable local supply of specialised materials and components.
If these targets are achieved, the programme could strengthen India’s position in the global maritime supply chain while creating a domestic industrial base to support the country’s long-term trade ambitions.