Narendra Modi inaugurates multi-modal terminal on Ganga in Varanasi: All you need to know about Jal Marg Vikas project

Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated an inland waterways terminal on River Ganga in Varanasi to the nation on Monday. This is the first of the four multi-modal terminals being constructed on National Waterways-I (River Ganga) as part of the World Bank-aided Jal Marg Vikas project.

Here are the 10 key things to know about the project as a whole and the Varanasi phase in particular:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicates to the nation India’s First Multi-Modal Terminal on river Ganga in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. Image courtesy PIB

• This multi-modal terminal on the River Ganga in Varanasi is the first of the three such terminals and two inter-modal terminals being constructed on the river. The project will have three multi-modal terminals in Varanasi, Sahibganj and Haldia, two inter-modal terminals, five pairs of Roll On-Roll Off (Ro-Ro) terminals, a new navigation lock at Farakka, assured depth dredging, an integrated vessel repair and maintenance facility, a Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS), a River Information System (RIS), as well as river training and river conservancy works.

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• The terminal is part of the government's Jal Marg Vikas project, which aims to develop the stretch of River Ganga between Varanasi and Haldia in West Bengal for navigation of large vessels up to 1,500-2,000 tonnes in weight, by maintaining a drought of 2 to 3 metres in this stretch of the river and setting up other systems required for safe navigation.

• The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), the implementing agency of the project, built the terminal with an objective to promote inland waterways as a cheaper and more environment-friendly means of transport, especially for cargo movement.

• The Jal Marg Vikas Project is being implemented along the Haldia-Varanasi stretch of the Ganga with the technical assistance and investment support of the World Bank, at an estimated cost of Rs 5,369.18 crore ($800 million, of which $375 million is an International Bank for Reconstruction and Development loan) on a 50:50 sharing basis between the Government of India and the World Bank. Phase I of the multi-modal terminal cost Rs 206.84 crore.

• The land used in Varanasi for the multi-modal terminal is 33.34 hectares, and the terminal capacity is 1.26 MTPA (metric tonnes per annum).

• Phase 1 of the project took off in June 2016 and was completed in November 2018.

• The jetty is 200 metres long and 42 metres wide. It includes a berthing and mooring facility.

• The facility will also have two mobile harbour cranes.

• The operation, management and further development of the multi-modal terminal will be done through a PPP model. The PPP operator is expected to be selected by December through an International Competitive Bidding process.

• The multi-modal terminal and the proposed freight village in Varanasi are expected to generate 500 direct jobs and more than 2,000 indirect employment opportunities.