Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday inaugurated the first multi-modal terminal on the Ganga river in Varanasi under a project aimed at promoting inland waterways as a cheaper and more environment-friendly means of transport.

This is the first of the three such terminals and two inter-modal terminals being constructed on the river.

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

The Jal Marg Vikas Project (JMVP) is being implemented on the Haldia-Varanasi stretch of National Waterway-1 (NW-1) with the technical assistance and investment support of the World Bank.

It is being built at an estimated cost of Rs. 5,369.18 crore, on a 50:50 sharing basis between the Government of India and the World Bank.