Ferry service to resume between Nagapattinam and KKS
The passenger ferry service between Nagapattinam in India and Kankesanthurai (KKS) near Jaffna in the Northern Province of Sri Lanka, which was launched in October 2023 by the Shipping Corporation of India (SCI), will resume on May 13 tentatively.
The ferry service will be operated by a private operator, IndSri Ferry Services, which SCI selected in consultation with the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL).
In order to make the service affordable and attractive for passengers, the Government of India has decided to bear the cost of applicable taxes, other relevant charges, and operating costs at Nagapattinam port, up to over LKR 25 million per month for a period of one year.
Similarly, GOSL has reduced the deviation tax currently charged to passengers leaving Sri Lanka by passenger vessels and ships.
It would be recalled that the Government of India has also extended USD 63.65 million in grant assistance to GOSL for the rehabilitation of KKS Harbour, which was earlier envisaged to be undertaken under a Line of Credit.
This is in keeping with India’s strong commitment to Sri Lanka’s economic recovery and its march towards progress and prosperity, which is conducted in close collaboration with India.
Strengthening maritime connectivity between India and Sri Lanka was a vital component of the vision document for economic partnership jointly adopted during the visit of the President of Sri Lanka to India in July 2023.
The resumption of the ferry service affirms the people-centric policies of the Government of India.
In his remarks during the launch of the service in October 2023, Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted that connectivity is not only about bringing two cities closer but also about bringing countries and their people closer.
He mentioned that the people of Sri Lanka will benefit from the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor, which was launched during the G20 summit in India in September 2023, as multimodal connectivity between our two countries is strengthened.
In the future, connectivity with Sri Lanka will be further enhanced through electricity grid interconnection, a two-way multipurpose pipeline, and the establishment of a land connectivity economic corridor.