India-Sri Lanka ferry service resumes after 40 years, linking Nagapattinam and Kankesanthurai
Cheriyapani sets sail on four-hour voyage, connecting two countries with historic ties
After forty years, passenger ferries between India and Sri Lanka have started up again, linking Nagapattinam in Tamil Nadu with Kankesanthurai in Jaffna.
With fifty passengers and twelve crew members, the high-speed vessel Cheriyapani set sail on a four-hour voyage covering 60 nautical miles, or roughly 110 kilometres, on Saturday morning.
This was the second attempt to revive a historic connectivity project that dates back to the 1900s but was shelved in the 1980s due to Sri Lanka's civil conflict.
The original service, known as the Indo-Ceylon Express or Boat Mail, operated a train and boat route via the Tuticorin port between Chennai and Colombo.
Attempts to restart the ferry service have been made multiple times since the civil war ended in 2009. In 2011, an attempt was made to establish a service connecting Tuticorin and Colombo; however, it was halted due to its high costs and lengthy duration.
Ranil Wickremesinghe, the president of Sri Lanka, visited India in July and decided to start the Nagapattinam-Kanekasanthurai service. The ship, which is owned and operated by the Shipping Corporation of India, can accommodate 150 passengers.
