Union Ports, Shipping and Waterways Minister Sarbananda Sonowal began a four-day visit to South Korea on Sunday, October 25, using the opening day in Busan to court Korean industry as India works to become one of the world’s top five shipbuilding nations by 2047.
Sonowal, who called Busan the hub of Korea’s maritime industry, started the trip by meeting Indian professionals working in Korean shipbuilding. Indian Ambassador to South Korea Gourangalal Das welcomed the gathering, which included staff of Samsung Heavy Industries, Hanwha Ocean, HD Hyundai, DNV and the Indian Register of Shipping.
“Your presence in Korea, at the heart of one of the world’s most advanced shipbuilding ecosystems, is a matter of pride for India,” Sonowal said.
He asked them to look beyond VOYAGES, the framework on shipbuilding, shipping and maritime logistics that the two countries adopted in April during South Korean President Lee Jae Myung’s state visit to India. “I want you to see VOYAGES not merely as a government framework, but as a platform for your professional growth and for India’s maritime future,” he said.
India aims to become a globally competitive centre for shipbuilding, ship repair, maritime manufacturing and logistics under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Maritime India Vision 2030 and Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047, Sonowal said. The Union Cabinet cleared a series of policy incentives for the sector in September 2025. The minister said the push would need many more shipbuilders, marine engineers, naval architects, designers, welders, project managers and technology specialists, and urged the professionals to bring their Korean experience home or back to Indian companies from Korea.
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“You can serve as living bridges between your networks in both countries,” he said. He also encouraged them to mentor young Indian professionals and to join the India Ship Technology Centre and the shipbuilding skills partnership between India and the Korea International Cooperation Agency.
Sonowal sought practical suggestions on three fronts: improving shipyard productivity and project execution, building a globally competitive skilled workforce, and deepening Indo-Korean cooperation in technology, manufacturing and innovation. “We are looking for partnership with Korea in shipbuilding, shipping, ports and maritime logistics,” he said.
The rest of the visit includes meetings with leaders of global shipbuilding companies, maritime industry bodies and think tanks. Sonowal will also take part in a ministerial roundtable in Busan on World Maritime Day, where ministers from major maritime nations and the secretary-general of the International Maritime Organisation are expected.
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