Sonowal receives VLGC Shivalik, India's third Very Large Gas Carrier under the Indian flag, at Visakhapatnam
On 6 October 2025 at Visakhapatnam, Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal received 'Shivalik', the Shipping Corporation of India's third Very Large Gas Carrier, sailing under the Indian flag.
Summary
On 6 October 2025 at Visakhapatnam, Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal received the country's third Very Large Gas Carrier (VLGC), 'Shivalik', under the Indian flag. Named after the Himalayan range and built in South Korea, the 225-metre carrier was inducted into the Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) fleet on 10 September 2025, joining Sahyadri and Anandamayi as SCI's third VLGC. Sonowal said SCI is working with oil PSUs to aggregate demand for 112 vessels and form a joint venture for long-term fleet augmentation. He cited the Shipbuilding Financial Assistance Scheme, extended to 2036 with a ₹24,736 crore corpus, a ₹25,000 crore Maritime Development Fund and the ₹19,989 crore Shipbuilding Development Scheme to raise domestic capacity to 4.5 million gross tonnage a year. SCI's fleet has 58 owned vessels totalling 5.26 million DWT.
Key facts
- Vessel
- VLGC Shivalik — 225 m; built in South Korea
- Fleet
- SCI's 3rd VLGC after Sahyadri and Anandamayi; inducted 10 Sept 2025
- Oil PSU JV
- Demand aggregation for 112 vessels
- Schemes
- SBFAS ₹24,736 cr (to 2036); MDF ₹25,000 cr; SbDS ₹19,989 cr
- SCI
- 58 owned vessels, 5.26 million DWT
Practice MCQs 2 questions
VLGC 'Shivalik', received by Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal in October 2025, is the Shipping Corporation of India's:
Show answer
Correct answer: D — third Very Large Gas Carrier
PIB: Shivalik joins Sahyadri and Anandamayi as SCI's third VLGC, and is the country's third VLGC under the Indian flag.
Consider the following statements about VLGC Shivalik: 1. It joins Sahyadri and Anandamayi in the Shipping Corporation of India's fleet. 2. It was built in Japan. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
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Correct answer: A — 1 only
Only 1 is correct. PIB: Shivalik joins Sahyadri and Anandamayi as SCI's third VLGC; it was built in South Korea.