50 years of New Mangalore Port: Karnataka Governor inaugurates 2 projects

The Governor virtually inaugurated two projects — 'Golden jubilee AOB circle road' and 'golden jubilee truck parking terminal' worth Rs 6.25 crore celebrating 50 years of service of the port.

Mangaluru: Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot visited the New Mangalore Port (NMP) on Friday as it celebrates 50 years of service to the nation.

The Governor virtually inaugurated two projects — 'Golden jubilee AOB circle road' and 'golden jubilee truck parking terminal' worth Rs 6.25 crore as part of the celebrations.

Speaking on the occasion, the Governor expressed his happiness and congratulated the Port on its “golden jubilee” year of service to India.

He said “The Port has played a pivotal role in the transformative journey of major ports of the country in the past decade. With a capacity of 74 MTPA, the port achieved a record handling of 42.5 MMT in 2018-19."

"Despite challenges posed by the pandemic, the port has rebounded to pre-Covid levels, handling 41.3 MMT in 2022-23 and is on course to achieve an all-time high 45MMT in 2023-24,” he also said.

The first cargo vessel “MV SATSU MARU” had called at the New Mangalore Port on June 10, 1974.

On the projects

The Port’s newly aligned pavement quality concrete (PQC) road connecting NMPA’s Administration office building circle to road no 1 junction was completed within the six-month time frame at a cost of Rs 2.54 crore. Prior to this transformation, the congested K K Gate and challenging road conditions posed significant difficulties for truckers and port users. The new road will facilitate port users, by facilitating congestion-free cargo movement.

The truck parking terminal near the Custom House building close to NH 66 was built at a total cost of Rs 3.71 crores. The 11,948 sqm terminal, including a well-paved approach road, can accommodate approximately 180 trucks and trailers. NMPA, in its commitment to further streamlining its operations, will be introducing a Fastag-based parking fee collection system at the renovated truck parking terminal.

In this regard, the Port has already invited tenders from nationalized/scheduled banks/authorized FASTag service providers for the work of “providing FASTag based system for collection of parking fees including installation and maintenance of equipment (software and hardware) for a period of 10 years.

The FASTag system will ensure quick and hassle-free transactions, saving drivers precious time and reducing congestion at the entrance.

NMPA Chairman A V Ramana, Deputy Chairman K G Nath and others were also present.