India's Federal Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Wednesday opened an India-Russia workshop organized to discuss the operationalization of the maritime trade route between Tamil Nadu's Chennai and the Russian Far Eastern port of Vladivostok in the Pacific Ocean.
The event is taking place in Chennai, the capital of India's southern state of Tamil Nadu, amid the backdrop of New Delhi's heightened cooperation with Moscow in the field of maritime trade.
The event is taking place in Chennai, the capital of India's southern state of Tamil Nadu, amid the backdrop of New Delhi's heightened cooperation with Moscow in the field of maritime trade.
"Exciting times at Port of Chennai as Sarbananda Sonowal, Union Minister, MoPSW, began the Indo-Russia Joint Workshop. Focused on the 'Eastern Maritime Corridor,' a game-changer & aims to reduce freight charges, expedite transit times & open up new trade avenues in the Pacific," India's Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways wrote on Twitter.
Anatoly Bobrakov, the Russian Minister for Development of the Far East and Arctic, was also present during the inauguration program of the India-Russia workshop on the EMC in Chennai.
Chennai-Vladivostok Maritime Corridor, desk
© Sputnik
The EMC is being touted as a game-changer by both countries, considering it would significantly reduce costs for transporting cargo from India and Russia: freight costs will come down by 30 percent while travel time will decrease by at least 16 days once the EMC becomes operational, as per estimates.
At present, a large container ship from India takes around 40 days to reach Russia's Far East region through Europe.
At present, a large container ship from India takes around 40 days to reach Russia's Far East region through Europe.