Mangaluru (PTI): The New Mangalore Port Authority (NMPA) celebrated the 60th National Maritime Day on Wednesday.

All vessels and port crafts at the port were decorated and sirens were blown by the vessels during the unfurling of the Maritime Day flag, a release from the NMPA said here on Thursday.

The ceremonial guard of honour, ‘Sail Past’ was received NMPA deputy chairperson K G Nath. Srinivas University chancellor Dr A Raghavendra Rao, officers of departments, trustees, officials of the Indian Coast Guard, port employees and users were present on the occasion.

Traditional folk dance and Yakshagana were performed in the port crafts for the audience to mark the celebration.

K G Nath, in his speech, mentioned the significance of the ancient Port of Lothal in the maritime sector and the ambitious project of constructing a national maritime heritage complex by the Ministry of Ports under the Sagarmala Scheme to recreate Lothal in the same way as it was during the ancient time, to showcase India’s rich and diverse maritime glory.