Union Minister for Shipping, Ports and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal on Thursday said that New Mangalore Port is poised to handle 100 million tonnes of cargo by 2047 under the Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision, the Centre’s long-term roadmap for maritime sector transformation.
Speaking at the golden jubilee celebrations of the New Mangalore Port Authority (NMPA), Sonowal recalled that the port, inaugurated in 1975, handled just 90,000 tonnes of cargo in its initial year. In 2024–25, the port handled 46.7 million tonnes.
He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set an ambitious national target for all Indian ports to collectively handle 10,000 million tonnes of cargo by 2047. “I am confident of Indian ports achieving that target in the next 22 years,” he said.
The Minister added that the Prime Minister has also directed that India should emerge among the top 10 ship-building nations by 2030, and climb to the top five by 2047. A detailed roadmap has already been prepared to increase New Mangalore Port’s profits tenfold over the next decade, he said, stressing that all development works will be carried out with the involvement of local communities.
Sonowal noted that the Union government is working closely with Karnataka and other States to position India as the world’s leading economy by 2047.
Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, and New & Renewable Energy, Prahlad Joshi, said the New and Renewable Energy Ministry is collaborating with the Directorate of Shipping on adopting green hydrogen as fuel for vessels, a key step toward decarbonising maritime transport.
Brijesh Chowta, MP, said Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari has agreed to the proposal for the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to take over the Port Connectivity Road from B.C. Road to Surathkal. He added that Mr. Gadkari has also approved preparation of a detailed project report for a bypass between Surathkal and B.C. Road to link NH 66 and NH 75.
The Centre has additionally formed a Joint Working Group to study the feasibility of constructing an integrated rail-and-road tunnel in the challenging Shiradi Ghat section.
