NEW DELHI: Concerted efforts of the government would result in at least Rs 6,000 crore cumulative profit for 12 major ports and three flagship bodies of Cochin Shipyard, Shipping Corporation and Dredging Corporation, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said today. “For the first time, all our 12 major ports and three flagship organisations – Cochin Shipyard, Shipping Corporation of India and Dredging Corporation of India are poised for over Rs 6,000 crore profit this fiscal,” Gadkari, the Minister of Road, Transport, Highways and Shipping, said at the media launch of upcoming Maritime India Summit. He said government was committed for all round development of its ports and for the first time some of the ports have even outperformed the private sector ports. The 12 ports recorded an operating profit of Rs 3,456.95 crore in the current fiscal up to January and several steps are being taken to modernise them. For next fiscal, cargo handling target for 12 ports has been set at 644.35 million tonne per annum (MTPA), with 105 MTPA expected at Kandla Port Trust. The minister said as part of modernisation and upgradation of ports various steps are being taken including implementation of 104 initiatives to reduce time and cost of operations in ports as per best global practises. Thirty of the 104 initiatives have been implemented and the remaining will be implemented over various phases by 2019. India has 12 major ports — Kandla, Mumbai, JNPT, Marmugao, New Mangalore, Cochin, Chennai, Ennore, V O Chidambarnar, Visakhapatnam, Paradip and Kolkata (including Haldia) which handle approximately 61 per cent of the country’s total cargo traffic.