First containerised cargo on an inland waterway received at Varanasi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently dedicated the multimodal terminal on River Ganga to the nation and received the first containerised cargo that had sailed from Haldia port, at Varanasi. Commenting on this landmark journey, Sudip Dey, Vice Chairman, FFFAI, said, “The recently-inaugurated multimodal terminal on National Waterway-1 (NW-1) for transporting containerised cargo between Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh and Haldia port in West Bengal is expected to provide a significant push to ex-im trade from eastern India, especially from Kolkata and its catchment areas. It is also expected that in the months to come, Haldia port would be able to strengthen its position as a viable transhipment port in the South East Asia region, thanks to burgeoning and potential trade transactions between India and Bangladesh through multimodal connectivity, where this port would play a pivotal role.”