As PM Modi pushes waterways, PepsiCo sails from Kolkata to Varanasi

PM Narendra Modi inaugurates India's first multi-modal inland waterways hub in Varanasi--a development officials hope will help shift cargo from the country's congested road and rail networks.

India’s first inland voyage by a container ship since it gained independence from Britain 70 years ago ended when the vessel docked in Varanasi on Monday, a development officials hope will help shift cargo from the country’s congested road and rail networks.

The 1,390-kilometre Ganga watercourse is one of the 111 waterways spanning 20,276 kilometers that India is reviving or planning to build. The World Bank-assisted Ganga waterways project -- costing Rs 53.7 billion ($738 million) -- will enable the commercial navigation of vessels and is set to be completed by 2023.

Transforming country’s waterways could be a gamechanger for India