POLICY CHANGES TO EXPAND INDIGENOUS FLEET

• A reform package by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) to cut India's dependence on foreign shipping (which carries the bulk of India's EXIM trade) and grow the Indian-flagged merchant fleet and domestic shipbuilding base.
• Combines a new statutory base (Merchant Shipping Act, 2025), preferential procurement (Right of First Refusal — RoFR), infrastructure-asset classification for large vessels, and four financing instruments (SBFAS, Ship Breaking Credit Note, Shipbuilding Development Scheme, Maritime Development Fund).
• Examinable as a GS-III maritime/infrastructure topic and a GS-II legislation/governance topic.