Ferries between India and Sri Lanka resume after 40 years

The ferry connection had been suspended since the outbreak of civil war in 1982. The service in operation since 14 October connects the port of Nagapattinam in Tamil Nadu and the Sri Lankan port of Kankesanthurai in four hours. Indian Prime Minister Modi: a project that also looks at the India-Middle East-Europe Corridor from which Colombo will also benefit.

Colombo (Asia News) - Forty years after their interruption due to the civil war, ferry connections between India and Sri Lanka resumed on Saturday 14 October. A move that Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed as an "important milestone" in strengthening bilateral ties, while for Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinge this step will help improve connectivity, trade and cultural ties between the two countries.

The ferry service connects Nagapattinam, India, and Kankesanthurai, near Jaffna. In his speech at the inauguration, Modi cited the recent launch of the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor during the G20 summit held in Delhi in September, arguing that Sri Lanka will also benefit from it.

The Indian Prime Minister added that the two governments "will continue to work closely to launch ferry services also on the traditional Rameswaram-Talaimannar route".

“For thousands of years, people have crossed the Palk Strait to travel from the Indian subcontinent to this island and from Sri Lanka to the Indian subcontinent,” Wickremesinghe recalled in a video link. This is how our cultures and trade developed."

Since the early years of the twentieth century, the Indo-Ceylon Express operated between Chennai and Colombo via Thoothukudi: its operations ceased in 1982 due to the civil war in Sri Lanka. To restore service, the Government of India supported the Tamil Nadu Maritime Board in modernizing facilities at the Nagapattinam port.

Similarly, the Government of Sri Lanka has created the necessary infrastructure in Kankesanthurai Port. At 8.15am on Saturday, the Cheriyapani ferry departed from Nagapattinam port with 50 passengers and 12 crew members on board.

After traveling 60 nautical miles, the ship reached Kankesanthurai at 12.30 pm, before returning to Nagapattinam at 2.00 pm. The high-speed ferry is operated by Shipping Corporation of India and has a capacity of 150 passengers.