Project Seabird Karwar added new homes for sailors, naval civilians and their children on Thursday, when General NS Raja Subramani, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) and Secretary, Department of Military Affairs, inaugurated residential accommodation and critical trunk utility and amenity infrastructure at Naval Base Karwar in Karnataka.

Vice Admiral Vivek Dahiya, Director General Seabird, and other senior officers were present, according to the Indian Navy.

The works at Project Seabird Karwar form part of Phase IIA, the ongoing expansion of the base to support ships and submarines on the west coast. The visit came days after General Subramani described the Navy as a strategic force multiplier at the Naval Commanders' Conference in New Delhi.

CDS opens 120 family flats and a kindergarten school at Karwar

The new buildings stand at East of Manzil Creek (EOMC) and Amadalli. One tower holds married accommodation for Senior Sailors and has 60 Dwelling Units (DUs). A second tower has another 60 DUs for the Navy's Defence Civilians. The package also covers living-in accommodation for 156 personnel of the Defence Security Corps (DSC), which guards defence installations, and a kindergarten school for families living on the base.

M/s NCC Ltd, Hyderabad built the homes and the amenity facilities. The trunk infrastructure, the main utility network that serves the base, was laid by M/s Cemindia Projects India Ltd.

Same builders behind earlier Karwar works

Both firms have worked at Karwar before. NCC Ltd built the four towers of 240 Senior Sailor flats that General Anil Chauhan, then CDS, opened in February 2025. Cemindia Projects, earlier known as ITD Cementation India, built the Main Distribution Sub Station inaugurated during the same visit, which supplies stabilised power to the operational piers, housing and utilities.

Project Seabird Karwar Phase IIA to base ships, submarines and aircraft

According to the Ministry of Defence, the scope of Phase IIA includes a dual-use Naval Air Station, a full-fledged Naval Dockyard and logistics facilities for ships and aircraft. An April 2024 Navy release placed the planned capacity at 32 ships and submarines and 23 yard craft, with four covered dry berths for maintenance. The air station will carry a civil enclave, which the Navy expects to bring more visitors to North Karnataka and South Goa.

The waterfront is already in use. In July, INS Malvan became the first warship commissioned at Karwar.

Once complete, the base will house around 10,000 uniformed and civilian personnel with their families. The ministry said this will give a strong push to the local economy, industry and tourism, and create direct and indirect jobs across the Uttara Kannada region. Earlier Navy releases put the jobs created by Phase IIA construction at around 7,000 direct and 25,000 indirect.

Over 90 percent of Seabird materials sourced in India

The project follows the norms of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) and the Indian Green Building Council (IGBC). On completion, it is expected to carry an IGBC Gold rating.

More than 90 percent of the materials and equipment are being sourced from within the country, in line with Aatmanirbhar Bharat, the ministry said. General Subramani has made indigenous capability a regular theme since he took over as CDS, including during his review of the C-295 line at Vadodara in June.

Karwar housing handovers continue through 2025 and 2026

Project Seabird was sanctioned in 1985, and the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi laid its foundation stone in 1986. INS Kadamba was commissioned as the base in 2005, and Phase I, built for 10 ships, was concluded in 2011.

Phase IIA works have been opened in stages. Admiral R Hari Kumar, then Chief of the Naval Staff, inaugurated a 350 metre pier for Offshore Patrol Vessels along with officers' and civilians' housing in April 2024. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh opened further piers and housing in April 2025.

In October 2025, Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi, then Chief of the Naval Staff, opened eight towers with 480 flats at the same East of Manzil Creek and Amadalli sites. The Navy said at the time that the townships, once fully built, would hold 2,160 homes for Senior Sailors and 3,168 for Defence Civilians. A further 300 dwelling units for Senior Sailors and Defence Civilians were inaugurated in February 2026.