Shorter time, higher baggage allowance; Ferry service between India-Sri Lanka launched

Nagapattinam (Tamil Nadu) [India]: The newly launched passenger ferry service from Nagapattinam to Sri Lanka’s Kankesanthurai will have a travel time of approximately 3-4 hours, sources said.

According to official sources, there will be a higher baggage allowance of 50 kg compared to 15 kg in the Chennai-Jaffna sector by air. Travellers carrying large baggage (50 kg) could easily travel to the northern and eastern parts of Sri Lanka in 3-4 hours instead of undertaking a long journey by air to Colombo followed by a tedious 8-10 hours’ road journey to the northern part of Sri Lanka.

Pilgrims visiting India could easily travel to Temples (Saneeswaram temple at Thirunallar, Rameshwaram, Madurari and Tanjore), Church (Velankanni) and Mosques (Nagore).

Sources further mentioned that the Ferry will continue until October 2023 this year before the North-East Monsoon sets in Tamil Nadu and the Sri Lankan coast. “Post that ferry operations would be difficult,” it mentioned.

The ferry services will again resume during the post monsoon season or during the fair weather season in January 2024.

Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) will operate the ferry service between Nagapattinam and Kankesanthurai.

Nagapattinam is 60 nautical miles (approximately 110 km) north of Kankesanthurai and the distance could be covered in approx 3-4 hours based on sea conditions.

Earlier on the Tamil Nadu Maritime Board (TMB)’s request, MEA had sanctioned Rs 8 crore for the upgradation of Nagpattinam port. The work includes dredging of the channel, and refurbishment of Passenger Terminal Building and approach road.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that the launch of ferry services between Nagapattinam and SrilLanka’s Kankesanthurai is an important milestone in strengthening the relations between the two countries.

“We are embarking on a new chapter in the diplomatic and economic relations between India and Sri Lanka. The launch of a ferry service between Nagapattinam and Kankesanthurai is an important milestone in strengthening our relations,” he said.

Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe on Saturday also called the launch of a ferry service between Tamil Nadu’s Nagapattinam and Sri Lanka’s Kankesanthurai an “important step” in increasing the connectivity between the two nations.

In a video message on the launch of the ferry service, Wickremesinghe stated, “This is an important step in increasing the connectivity between India and Sri Lanka. For thousands of years, people have traversed the Palk Strait to travel from the Indian subcontinent to this island and from Sri Lanka back to the Indian subcontinent. This is how our culture has developed. This is how our trade developed.”

Meanwhile, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday said that the launch of a passenger ferry service between Tamil Nadu’s Nagapattinam and Sri Lanka’s Kankesanthurai is “truly a big step” for people-to-people contacts between India and Sri Lanka.

Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal flagged off the ferry service between Tamil Nadu’s Nagapattinam and Sri Lanka’s Kankesanthurai.