Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal joined the Golden Jubilee Celebration of the New Mangalore Port Authority (NMPA) at Mangaluru, marking 50 years of its service as one of India’s leading maritime gateways. The event also witnessed the inauguration, dedication and foundation stone laying of 16 key infrastructure projects and 113 CSR initiatives worth Rs 1,500 crore.
The celebration highlighted the remarkable journey of NMPA and its transformation under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, from a regional gateway into a technologically advanced and globally competitive maritime hub.
At the recently concluded India Maritime Week 2025 in Mumbai, MoUs worth over Rs 12 lakh crore were signed across India’s maritime sector, of which Rs 52,000 crore were by NMPA. “This is a strong signal of the rising confidence of investors in the transformed maritime ecosystem of our nation.
Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal also inaugurated the newly renovated campus of Mangalore Marine College and Technology (MMCT) calling it a milestone in India’s journey toward becoming a top three maritime nation.
The Minister also inaugurated the new Rs 9.51 crore office building of the Mercantile Marine Department (MMD), Mangalore, built on land allotted by NMPA. The facility will conduct competency examinations for seafarers from Karnataka and neighbouring states, easing their travel burden for documentation and certification.
Tracing the port’s five-decade journey, the Union Minister said that from its modest beginnings in 1975 with four berths and 90,000 tonnes of cargo, NMPA has grown into a powerhouse of progress with 16 berths and a Single Point Mooring facility, handling over 46 million tonnes of cargo annually. The port, with a usable capacity of 74 million tonnes, aims to reach 100 million tonnes by 2047.
Sarbananda Sonowal noted that NMPA has become India’s largest exporter of coffee and second-largest importer of LPG, with 92% mechanisation of its operations, which has enhanced logistics efficiency and safety while promoting ease of doing business. The port serves as a critical node for industries in Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu, and its growing role in cruise tourism has revitalised local economies through tourism, hospitality, and small-scale enterprises.
During the ceremony, the Union Minister inaugurated multiple infrastructure and CSR projects worth Rs 1,500 crore, including a 150-bed multi-specialty hospital built under the PPP model the first of its kind among India’s major ports. The hospital will provide healthcare services to port employees and nearby communities, including coverage under Ayushman Bharat.
The Minister added that NMPA’s 2047 Master Plan envisions doubling its cargo handling capacity, achieving carbon neutrality, and positioning Mangaluru as a major logistics and cruise tourism hub for South India. The port also plans to develop deep draft terminals, LNG infrastructure, and a new outer harbour cruise terminal with seaplane and heli-taxi facilities.
Sarbananda Sonowal highlighted that India is now the third-largest seafaring nation, contributing nearly 15% of the global workforce, with the number of Indian seafarers rising from 1.08 lakh in 2014 to over 3.2 lakh today. “By 2030, one in every five global seafarers will be an Indian,” he added. Sonowal concluded by inviting global partners to register ships under the Indian flag, invest in ports & shipyards, expand shipboard training for Indian cadets.
The Union Minister said that the government’s Maritime India Vision 2030 and Maritime Amritkaal Vision 2047 serve as blueprints for modernisation, with more than 300 actionable initiatives to strengthen ports, logistics, inland waterways, and green shipping.
