The reason: The country, with a 7,500-kilometre-long coastline, does not have a single world-class marina, meaning wealthy Indians who own yachts have no choice but to park them in Europe, Singapore and Dubai, rather than Mumbai or Goa.
The Modi government plans to change this with a policy to promote “nautical tourism” and personal boating.
The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) is proposing to build marinas at various locations along the east and west coasts that would provide world-class infrastructure for sailing and parking yachts from around the world, Union Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said.
“We are adding a new dimension to our plan to promote cruise tourism. This includes developing the yachting ecosystem by building marinas along the Indian coast. This will be developed on the lines of existing facilities in several European countries,” Sonowal said in an interview.
A yacht policy will be included in the Cruise India Mission that aims to promote cruise tourism by developing airport-like facilities at ports to attract international passengers. The Mission is expected to be launched later this month.
“The plan to build marinas or small port facilities for yachts and smaller vessels is also aimed at offering people moving to Dubai and Singapore the opportunity to live this nautical experience. The scheme not only aims to facilitate the construction of luxury yachts, but also seeks to create ample employment opportunities within the country – our estimates suggest that each yacht would require at least 20 crew members.
“So even if we initially had facilities like those in Croatia, which have marinas that would accommodate 15,000 yachts, that would create huge employment opportunities,” Sonowal said.
Shipping Secretary TK Ramachandran said these marinas would be developed across all ports. The ministry will identify key locations to set up the infrastructure on a public-private partnership basis.
People aware of the development said marinas in places like Goa, Mumbai and other places frequented by business and leisure travellers would also accommodate immigration clients and facilities, while efforts would also be made to attract the private sector to commercially develop the area around the marinas with hotels, shopping arcades and recreational, business and conference facilities.
“We hope that the first set of marinas will be built soon. This should be in line with the development of facilities to promote cruise tourism,” Sonowal said.
Owning a yacht is certainly not cheap (they can cost between $15 billion and $1.5 billion, the price of the Eclipse, the world’s most expensive yacht), but the Ministry of Transport says yacht sales have increased in India in recent years. Most yachts are imported.
The Indian yacht market generated revenue of $115.1 million in 2023 and is expected to reach $162.9 million by 2030, according to a report by Grand View Research, a market research and consulting firm based in India and the United States. However, this figure is very small compared to global standards – just 1.2% of the global yacht market in 2023. China is the fastest-growing market in Asia Pacific and is projected to reach $810.0 million by 2030.
Among the super-rich Indians who own yachts are industrialists Mukesh AmbaniLaxmi Mittal, Gautam Singhania, Anil Ambani and film star Salman Khan, according to industry reports.
According to the report, Indian citizens own about 1% of all yachts 40 metres or longer. India’s superyacht industry is still in its early stages, with fewer than 300 vessels registered in the country. This includes around 120 luxury yachts and more than 150 speedboats.
In India, the infrastructure available for parking yachts is limited in Mumbai, Goa, Kochi and Chennai. Elsewhere, yachts are parked in ports that have temporary facilities for them.
Some of the key global companies operating in the yacht market are Damen Shipyards Group, Azimut Benetti Group and Ferretti SpA. The government wants some of these companies to set up shop in India and offer their yachts and services here.
“Yachting has huge growth potential in India, where it has become a status symbol for those aspiring to greater social mobility,” said Anil Devli, executive director of the Indian National Shipowners Association (INSA). “But in all this, the government should ensure that any yacht policy encourages domestic production of these products in our shipyards. Also, the government should consider relaxing visa norms to bring in technicians and non-engineering workers who are familiar with maintaining these complex vessels,” Devli said.
The Ministry is also expected to discuss security-related issues with agencies like the Indian Coast Guard and Navy to facilitate uninterrupted movement of yachts along the Indian coast. A protocol will also be developed to facilitate this service.
“If you develop facilities as per global standards, then you will definitely be able to involve all the stakeholders,” Sonowal said.
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