India (Commonwealth Union)_ India has recently launched a new direct shipping service between Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu and the Maldives, with the aim of improving bilateral trade and connectivity between the two nations. The vessel named ‘M.V. MSS Galena’ was flagged off by Minister of State for Ports, Shipping, and Waterways, Shantanu Thakur from V.O. Chidambaranar Port. The development comes on the heels of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s June 2019 visit to the archipelago, where a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the Indian Ministry of Port, Shipping and Waterways and the Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation of the Maldives.
The ‘M.V. MSS Galena’ is capable of transporting substantial cargo and can accommodate 421 TEUs of containers. This month, the vessel arrived at PSA SICAL Container Terminal carrying 270 TEUs. The service is scheduled to make three visits per month and will operate on a Tuticorin-Male-Tuticorin rotation. During the launch, Minister Thakur commented that this service would promote, develop, and stabilize the shipping network between Indian and Maldivian ports and added that this initiative would minimize logistical and other costs, improve connectivity, and save the time taken to transport goods between India and the Maldives.
The minister said, “This service added a new chapter to connectivity initiatives taken by both countries in the (IOR) Indian Ocean Region & promoted, developed & stabilized shipping connectivity between Indian & Maldivian ports”. Further, India expressed hopes that this new service will boost trade and economic opportunities as well as maritime trade links with its neighbor. The new direct shipping service also replaced the existing method of transporting bulk cargo bound for the Maldives through barges and sail ships, while containers were routed through Colombo. It is worth noting that the Shipping Corporation of India formerly operated a service between Tuticorin, Kochi, Kulhudhuffushi, and Male.
