Bengal: SMPK bags maritime excellence award during India Maritime Week

Kolkata, Nov 1 (IANS) Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port, Kolkata (SMPK), the oldest operational ‘Major Port’ in the country, won the Maritime Excellence Award in the Heritage Category during India Maritime Week 2025.

This award was presented in recognition of SMPK's long-standing contribution to India’s maritime growth and its rich cultural legacy.

Despite several constraints, including a long and shallow navigation channel to the sea along the River Hooghly, the port has been performing extremely well.

After a phenomenal performance in 2024-25, SMPK registered the highest cargo traffic among all 12 Major Ports in the country in the first quarter of 2025-26.

Between April and June 2025, the port handled 17.186 million metric tonnes of cargo at its two facilities in Kolkata and Haldia. This was a growth of 21.21 per cent from the cargo handled in the corresponding period of 2024-25.

The award was presented by Sarbananda Sonowal, Union minister of ports, shipping and waterways and the minister of state Shantanu Thakur Rathendra Raman, chairperson, and Samrat Rahi, deputy chairperson, SMPK.

"This recognition added a new gem to SMPK’s crown, recognising its 155 years of dedicated service, tracing its remarkable journey from being a historic maritime gateway of Eastern India to a dynamic, forward-looking port that anchors trade, connectivity and economic development of the region. Over the decades, SMPK has not only strengthened India’s maritime capabilities but also stood as a living testament to the nation’s industrial and cultural revolution," a senior SMPK official noted.

The port comprises the Kolkata Dock System (KDS) and the Haldia Dock Complex (HDC). It also has huge landholdings in Kolkata, Howrah and Haldia, where several port-based industries and warehouses have come up.

--IANS

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