Under the ‘Sagar SamajikSahyog’ – revised Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Guidelines 2023 major Ports have been empowered to sanction and approve CSR projects.

According to these guidelines launched by the ministry of ports, shipping and waterways Major Ports are required to create a CSR budget for each year as a percentage of their net profit.

These guidelines aim to make a lasting impact by addressing the pressing needs of the society, focusing on education, healthcare, skill development, environmental sustainability and community empowerment.

In the CSR expenditure incurred by Major Ports in Financial Year 2022-23 Visakhapatnam port authority spent a mere Rs 27 lakhs which was the second lowest spend compared to other major ports in the country.

As per the defined guidelines major ports with net profit (previous financial year) of less than Rs 100 crores should spend anywhere between 3-5% on CSR while ports with net profit between Rs 100 to Rs 500 crores should spend about 2-3% (subject to a minimum of Rs 3) crores while for net profit above Rs 500 crores the percentage is 0.5%-2%.

The highest expenditure on CSR was done by Deendayal Port Authority at Rs 10.14 crores followed by Kamarajar Port at Rs 9.8 crores and Paradip at Rs 8.58 crores.

The lowest expenditure on CSR was done by Mormugao Port at Rs 0.0027 crs followed by VPA at Rs 0.27 crores.

This information was recently given by the Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Mr Sarbananda Sonowal in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.