- Country’s first container cargo transported on inland waterways from Kolkata and was handled by Liebherr equipment at Varanasi
- Honourable Prime Minister Shri. Narendra Modi officially inaugurated the port and welcomed the first container vessel
Liebherr mobile harbour cranes are working on the first Indian inland waterway terminal in Varanasi. India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi officially inaugurated the newly developed port on the river Ganga.
Varanasi is located in northern India 780 kilometres east of the Indian capital Delhi, predominantly on the left bank of the Ganga, India’s largest river. Mid of November the first of four multi modal terminals being constructed on the river Ganga was officially inaugurated by Indians prime minister Narendra Modi. The port is part of the World Bank-aided Jal Marg Vikas project of the Inland Waterways Authority of India. Three other terminals are under construction at Sahibganj, Haldia and Gazipur. The project will enable commercial navigation of vessels with capacity of 1500-2,000 DWT on river Ganga.
India’s first multi-modal terminal was official inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Prime Minister also welcomed India’s first container vessel MV Rabindranath Tagore that has sailed from Kolkata carrying cargo to Varanasi. Container movement on an inland waterway in India is being done for the first time post-independence.
The vessels arriving Varanasi via the river Ganga will be loaded and unloaded by Liebherr mobile harbour cranes type LHM 180. Both cranes were initially sold to Afcons Infrastructure Limited. Afcons is part of the Shapoorji Pallonji Group and is one of the top infrastructure development companies in India with its presence in various parts of the world. Both Liebherr mobile harbour cranes are running with a 390kW Liebherr diesel engine and provide a maximum lifting capacity of 64 tonnes in four-rope configuration. Whether it is containers, bulk or general cargoes, with a maximum outreach of 35 metres
the LHM 180 is the right handling solution for feeder and handysize ships sailing on the river Ganga.
“We feel honoured and proud to be part of this ground-breaking infrastructure project. Our cranes are extremely reliable and will clearly support the handling of goods in the port of Varanasi. We also hope that Liebherr cranes will be used for the efficient container handling of the other planned inland terminals in Sahibganj, Haldia and Gazipur”, quotes Sunil Kalra, Divisional Head of the Maritime division of Liebherr India.
