India becomes world's top ship-recycling nation in 2025, hits Vision 2030 target five years early

India claimed the top spot in global ship recycling in 2025, surpassing all competitors to become the world's number one ship-breaking nation — and doing so five full years ahead of the Vision 2030 target the industry had set for itself. The achievement, reported by Mint, marks a significant industrial and environmental milestone for a sector that has historically operated under intense global scrutiny over worker safety and environmental standards.

At the heart of India's dominance is Alang, the vast ship-breaking yard along the Gujarat coastline that is the largest such facility in the world by physical area. In recent years, Alang has undergone substantial upgradation — installing safer cutting technology, improving worker welfare facilities and aligning with the requirements of the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships. India's ratification trajectory and industry investments have helped reassure international shipping companies that chose Indian yards over less regulated rivals.

Bangladesh and Pakistan, which have long competed with India for the largest share of global ship-recycling volume, have faced greater difficulty in meeting international environmental and safety standards. That gap has increasingly directed business toward Indian yards, contributing to the surge in tonnage handled by facilities like Alang.

The ship-recycling industry generates employment for an estimated 25,000 to 50,000 workers directly at Alang and many more in ancillary industries that process recovered steel, machinery and materials. India's emergence as the global leader in the sector not only underscores its industrial capacity but also signals that a historically hazardous industry can be reformed into a more sustainable one.