Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal on Wednesday inaugurated and laid foundation stones for port infrastructure projects worth about Rs 2.19 billion at Chennai Port Authority and Kamarajar Port, aimed at strengthening coastal protection, safety systems, healthcare facilities and digital operations.

At Chennai Port Authority, four projects with a combined investment of more than Rs 1.29 billion were inaugurated. These include the strengthening of nearly 850 metres of the eastern breakwater, where the revetment has been upgraded with redesigned slopes and tetrapod armouring to improve protection against storms and cyclones.

A new firefighting pump house was commissioned at the oil dock areas of Bharati Dock 1 and 3 to enhance emergency preparedness in hazardous zones. The port also inaugurated the modernisation of Chennai Port Hospital, upgrading it into a 125-bed facility spread across around 127,000 sq ft, with improved wards, operation theatres, diagnostics and enhanced safety systems.

The fourth project involved the launch of an Enterprise Business System, an integrated SAP-based digital platform designed to reduce paperwork, cut delays and improve turnaround time for port users by streamlining operations.

At Kamarajar Port, the minister laid foundation stones for two infrastructure projects and launched an e-Port Clearance Portal to enable electronic port clearance for shipping lines and agents. One of the projects is a Rs 0.014 billion northern access road connectivity initiative, involving the realignment of a 360-metre stretch of the port’s boundary wall to facilitate faster cargo evacuation.

The port has also completed the rehabilitation of a 202-metre damaged section of the northern breakwater at a cost of Rs 1.05 billion, using heavy tetrapods and rock armouring designed by IIT Madras. Sonowal said the projects would strengthen port resilience, improve safety and speed up operations, contributing to lower logistics costs and more efficient cargo movement.

Together, Chennai and Kamarajar ports crossed 100 million tonnes of cargo handling in 2025 for the first time. Chennai Port handles about 1.8 million standard shipping containers annually, while Kamarajar Port handled 48.41 million tonnes of bulk and liquid cargo last year, with utilisation exceeding 80 per cent of its capacity.