HARBOUR / Harbor is a place on the seashore where ships coming from sea routes stop.
Port is that part of HARBOR, where ships coming from sea routes unload and
load their goods.
Ports - GATEWAYS OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE
The ports provide facilities of docking,
loading, unloading and the storage facilities for cargo. In order to provide
these facilities, the port authorities make arrangements for maintaining
navigable channels, arranging tugs and barges, and providing labour and
managerial services.
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 (The surrounding area connected to a port, through which produced goods reach abroad in the form of exports and imported goods from abroad reach the market, is called Hinterland).
Types of Port
Generally, ports are classified
according to the types of traffic which they handle.
Types of port according to cargo handled:
(i) Industrial Ports: These ports specialise in bulk cargo-like grain, sugar, ore, oil, chemicals and similar materials.
(ii) Commercial Ports: These ports handle general cargo-packaged products and manufactured good. These ports also handle passenger traffic.
(iii) Comprehensive Ports: Such ports handle bulk and general cargo in large volumes. Most of the world’s great ports are classified as comprehensive ports.
Types of port on the basis of location:
(i) Inland Ports: These ports are located away from the seacoast. 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; Memphis is located on the river Mississippi; Rhine has several ports like Mannheim and Duisburg; and Kolkata is located on the river Hoogli, a branch of the river Ganga.
(ii) 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.
Types of port on the basis of specialised functions:
(i) Oil Ports: These ports deal in the processing and shipping of oil. Some of these are tanker ports and some are refinery ports. Maracaibo in Venezuela, Esskhira in Tunisia, Tripoli in Lebanon are tanker ports. Abadan on the Gulf of Persia is a refinery port.
(ii) 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.
(iii) 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. These stations occur in pairs located in such a way that they face each other across the water body, e.g., Dover in England and Calais in France across the English Channel.
(iv) 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.
(v) 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.
NEXT - Famous Sea Port of India
You Can Also Visit
Visit Digital Library & E Books