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1. Ports
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- The primary entry points for international trade are the harbors and ports.
- Ports offer essential services such as docking, loading, unloading, and storage for cargo.
- To ensure these services are efficiently provided, port authorities organize the maintenance of navigable channels, coordinate the use of tugs and barges, and offer both labor and managerial support.
- The importance of a port is judged by the size of cargo and the number of ships handled.
- The quantity of cargo handled by a port is an indicator of the level of development of its hinterland.
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Types of Port
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Types of port according to cargo handled
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- Industrial Ports: These ports specialize in bulk cargo-like grain, sugar, ore, oil, chemicals and similar materials.
- Commercial Ports: These ports handle general cargo-packaged products and manufactured goods.
These ports also handle passenger traffic
Comprehensive Ports: Such ports handle bulk and general cargo in large volumes Most of the world‘s great ports are classified as comprehensive ports.
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Types of port on the basis of location
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- Inland Ports: These ports are located away from the sea coast. They are linked to the sea through a river or a canal. Such ports are accessible to flat bottom ships or barges. For example, Manchester is linked with a canal and Kolkata is located on the river Hoogli, a branch of the river Ganga.
- Out Ports: These are deep water ports built away from the actual ports. These serve the parent ports by receiving those ships which are unable to approach them due to their large size. Classic combination, for example, is Athens and its out port Piraeus in Greece.
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Port on the basis of specialized functions:
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- Oil Ports: These ports deal in the processing and shipping of oil. Some of these are tanker ports and some are refinery ports.
- Ports of Call: These are the ports which originally developed as calling points on main sea routes where ships used to anchor for refueling, watering and taking food items. Later on, they developed into commercial ports. Aden, Honolulu and Singapore are good examples.
- Packet Station: These are also known as ferry ports. These packet stations are exclusively concerned with the transportation of passengers and mail across water bodies covering short distances,
- Entrepot Ports: These are collection centres where the goods are brought from different countries for export. Singapore is an entrepot for Asia. Rotterdam for Europe, and Copenhagen for the Baltic region.
- Naval Ports: These are ports which have only strategic importance. These ports serve warships and have repair workshops for them. Kochi and Karwar are examples of such ports in India.
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