India Launches Its Own Center for Maritime Arbitration

In the ongoing revamp of its shipping sector, India has established its first maritime arbitration center. Last week, the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) with the India International Arbitration Centre (IIAC) to launch the new India International Maritime Dispute Resolution Centre (IIMDRC) in Mumbai.  

This marks a major milestone in promoting India as a global destination for maritime dispute resolution, especially through arbitration and mediation. Currently, London, Singapore and Hong Kong dominate in the maritime dispute resolution market.

While MoPSW said that IIMDRC is designed to handle global cases, it primarily seeks to align with the government’s “Resolve in India” initiative. Essentially, Indian maritime companies will be obligated to work with IIMDRC instead of other foreign centers.

“This is a monumental step in strengthening India’s dispute resolution infrastructure in the maritime sector,” said Retired Justice Hemant Gupta, the Chairperson of IIAC.

The center is part of a broad revamp of India’s maritime sector under the flagship Sagarmala initiative. Launched in 2015, Sagarmala seeks to enhance the performance of the Indian logistics sector, which includes ports expansion and development of the domestic shipbuilding sector. The Sargamala program targets to complete a total of 839 projects by 2035, with an estimated investment cost of $70 billion. The ports ministry says that it is on course in the implementation plan, with 262 projects already complete.

At the same meeting last week, the ports ministry floated a proposal to create a mega shipbuilding park. The ambitious initiative aims to consolidate shipbuilding capabilities across India, fostering efficiency. MoPSW said that by integrating shipbuilding resources and expertise from various states, India would reinforce its position on the global shipbuilding stage. No details were provided on where the mega shipbuilding park would be located.