Mumbai, Oct 9 (PTI) The third edition of Global Maritime India Summit (GMIS), scheduled to be held in the city from October 17, is expected to create 15 lakh job opportunities, Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal said on Monday.

Addressing a media conference ahead of the three-day event, Sonowal also said the government's vision is to foster a blue economy, promoting the development of green ports and sustainable infrastructure, among others.

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The summit is the country's vision of 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' and it captures a wide range of opportunities for public-private partnerships, the minister said. The previous two editions were held in 2016 and 2021.

Investment opportunities worth Rs 10 lakh crore have already been identified across the sector with a potential to generate more than 15 lakh job opportunities, Sonowal said.

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"This kind of summit will be able to bring investment from across the world in the maritime sector whether it is ship building, ship repairing, port modernisation (in fact), all kind of activities. In the near future, whatever (investment) is utilised in whatever sector, it will create more than 1.5-million jobs across the country,” he said.

The minister said the government has taken a number of steps for the welfare of the coastal community, which has resulted in better efficiency across ports and better cargo handling capacity.

“Our vision is to foster a blue economy, promoting the development of green ports, sustainable infrastructure, cruise tourism and attracting global investments to propel the maritime industry forward,” he said.

The summit is expected to draw participation from more than 70 countries, hosting over 250 national and international speakers and CEOs, in addition to conducting more than 20 thematic sessions, including 7 international roundtables and 13+ sectoral and state discussions, according to the shipping ministry.

Discussions are planned on regional cooperation in BIMSTEC countries, Chabahar and INSTC (International North–South Transport Corridor), Africa, Indo Pacific, Europe and the newly launched IMEC (India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor), it said.

Secretary, Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, TK Ramachandran, said the summit has identified several focus areas, including Ports of the Future, Decarbonisation, Coastal Shipping and Inland Water Transport (IWT), Shipbuilding, Repair and Recycling, Finance, Insurance and Arbitration, among others.

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