First multi-modal terminal faces land, capacity challenges in Varanasi

The Varanasi Multi-Modal Terminal is one of six such freight terminals planned for Ghazipur, Kalughat, Sahibgunj, Triveni and Haldia

Last November, the Prime Minister inaugurated the new Multi-Modal Terminal on the Ganges in Varanasi and received the first container cargo via the inland waterway. Since then, only one other cargo container has docked here, and none has departed.

The highway and rail connectivity which form the other ‘modes’ of the terminal are yet to be constructed and connected to the water terminal. The root of the delay is the difficulty in acquiring land.

A government statement in July 2018 said the Rs 169.59- crore Multi-Modal Terminal being built by the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) was set to