Cabinet Approves Rs 10,000 Crore Scheme to Make India a Global Container Manufacturing Hub
- Container Manufacturing Promotion Scheme aims to increase domestic production capacity tenfold to 7.5 lakh TEUs and strengthen India’s maritime supply chain.
- Sonowal thanks PM Modi for the Make in India initiative, calling the scheme a major step towards reducing import dependence and securing the logistics chain.
New Delhi, October 28, 2026: The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved the ₹10,000-crore Container Manufacturing Promotion Scheme (CMPS), announced in the Union Budget 2026–27, to establish a globally competitive container manufacturing ecosystem in India.
The scheme will run from FY 2027–28 to FY 2039–40, with three years allocated for setting up manufacturing facilities and ten years for production support.
The scheme will support both new manufacturing facilities and the expansion of existing units. It aims to increase India’s annual container manufacturing capacity nearly tenfold, from approximately 70,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) to 7.5 lakh TEUs.
Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal welcomed the Cabinet’s decision and thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for strengthening the Make in India initiative in the container manufacturing sector.
“I express my heartfelt gratitude to Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji for his visionary leadership. His Make in India push is giving our container manufacturers the confidence to build at scale, and this scheme is a strong step towards reducing import dependence,” Sonowal said.
India’s trade relies heavily on shipping containers, most of which are manufactured abroad. Under the Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047, India’s container traffic is projected to increase from approximately 24 million TEUs in 2024 to 175 million TEUs by 2047, highlighting the need to develop domestic manufacturing capacity.
Key Features of the Scheme
1. Interest Subvention Assistance — ₹859 crore
The scheme will provide annual interest subvention of 3% on eligible term loans for greenfield manufacturing plants with a minimum annual capacity of 1,00,000 TEUs and brownfield expansions adding at least 25,000 TEUs of annual capacity.
2. Operational Expenditure Assistance — ₹8,891 crore
Financial assistance will be provided for each container manufactured to global shipping standards and sold by eligible manufacturers. The assistance will amount to ₹49,500 per 20-foot container and ₹86,625 per 40-foot container to help bridge the cost gap with imported containers.
Domestic content requirements will increase from 70% to 90%.
3. Testing and Certification — ₹150 crore
The scheme will support common testing facilities, including dynamic longitudinal impact testing, to reduce dependence on overseas testing and certification infrastructure.
4. Scheme Management — ₹100 crore
The allocation will cover administration, monitoring and capacity-building activities.
5. Land at Major Ports
Manufacturers will receive support for leasing land at major ports at 25% of the notified rate.
An Inter-Ministerial Steering Committee chaired by the Secretary of the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways will approve the scheme guidelines and sanction financial assistance.
Employment Generation and Economic Impact
The scheme is expected to create approximately 3,000 direct jobs and more than 50,000 indirect jobs across the steel, components and logistics sectors. It is also expected to benefit ancillary industries manufacturing corner castings, specialised steel, wooden frames and paints.
According to government estimates, the scheme could generate approximately ₹75,000 crore in economic output by FY 2039–40, representing more than seven times the financial support provided under the programme.
Expected sources of demand include the replacement of the global container fleet, the Bharat Container Shipping Line and the development of major ports such as Vadhavan and Galathea Bay.
“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, and we take another step towards a self-reliant India and the goals of Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047,” Sonowal added.