Sarbananda Sonowal, the Union Minister of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways, on Thursday inaugurated and dedicated, and laid the foundation for 16 infrastructure projects and 113 CSR projects worth ₹1,500 crore in Mangaluru.

At the recently concluded India Maritime Week, MoUs worth ₹12 lakh crore were signed, out of which, ₹52,000 crore were signed by the New Mangalore Port Authority. “This is a strong signal of the rising confidence of investors in the transformed maritime ecosystem of our nation,” said Sonowal, who was in Mangaluru for the Golden Jubilee celebrations of the New Mangaluru Port Authority (NMPA).

Sonowal also inaugurated the newly renovated campus of Mangalore Marine College and Technology (MMCT). He called it a milestone in India’s journey toward becoming a top-three maritime nation. The minister also inaugurated the new ₹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.

The Union Minister also traced the port’s five-decade journey, saying 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.

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.

The Union Minister inaugurated multiple infrastructure and CSR projects worth ₹1,500 crore, including a 150-bed multi-speciality 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.