India plans to set up a consortium with equity participation by public sector enterprises to bid for operating overseas port assets, senior officials told ET. Stakeholders in Bharat Global will be Indian Port Rail & Ropeway Corporation, Sagarmala Development Company and Shipping Corporation of India (SCI), they said. India will also operationalise Bharat Container Shipping Line as a vertical within SCI to weat her global trade disruptions, officials said. “The consortium will be named on the lines of Bharat Global Ltd. It will replicate the Chabahar port model in other strategic locations,” a senior official told ET. India is actively exploring opportunities to enhance maritime presence and trade connectivity, after signing a 10-year bilateral pact to operate Chabahar port in Iran. India also has a presence in Myanmar through Sittwe port, built under the Kaladan Multimodal Transit Transport Project. Both Sittwe and Chabahar are handled by India Ports Global. 117467118India Ports Global is a joint venture of Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority and Deendayal Port Authority. The proposed entity is expected to pursue interests in other nations, with India looking to expand its global port management footprint. These projects are seen as India’s regional strategic response to Gwadar port in Pakistan being developed under China’s Belt and Road Initiative. The outreach is also in line with the planned India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor, which was floated during the G20 summit in 2023 and offers alternative routes to the Suez Canal. Indian Port Rail & Ropeway is a joint venture of 11 major ports under the ministry of ports, shipping and waterways. Sagarmala Development Co was incorporated in August 2016 to implement domestic port modernisation initiatives under the eponymous programme.Trade FocusTrade disruptions, following a global container shortage after the pandemic, prompted establishment of the Bharat Container Shipping Line, another official said. Container charges had risen substantially at the time, hitting Indian exporters hard. “SCI’s shipping line will also ensure that any future container shortages will not affect India’s trade interests,” the official said, adding that the Bharat Container Shipping Line will operate along routes where most Indian exports go. This will also boost the prospects of SCI, which has largely been focused on shorter distances and coastal trade.