What is the truth of Bhavnagar-Bharuch ferry service inaugurated by PM Modi in 2017? – Alt News

A 40-second video that shows trucks unloading from a ship has been shared on social media. It has been shared with a message that claims that prime minister Narendra Modi has started a ferry service from Bhavnagar to Bharuch that reduces the distance between the two cities to 32 km. The distance by road is 350 km, as per the claim, but it can be covered in 30 minutes by sea. The ferry can also carry 50 trucks, 60 buses, 200 cars, 350 motorcycles and 600 passengers, the claim adds.

भावनगर से भरूच रोड की दूरी 350 किलोमीटर और समुद्री रास्ते से इसकी दूरी है 32 किलोमीटर
इसी समुद्री रास्ते से प्रधानमंत्री ने जहाज सर्विस चालू की है
इस जहाज की क्षमता एक बार मे 50 ट्रक, 60 बसे, 200 कारे, 350 मोटरसाइकिल, 600 लोगो को,मात्र आधे घंटे में पर करवाना।
इसे कहते है विकास pic.twitter.com/LfeUqw0Nbm

— सिंह-#३ह (@Singh51173240) January 30, 2022

Alt News has received a verification request for the video on the official Alt News mobile application.

The same video was also viral in 2020.

????️ भावनगर से भरूच रोड की दूरी 350 किलोमीटर, जबकि समुद्री रास्ते से इसकी दूरी है 32 किलोमीटर
इसी समुद्री रास्ते से @narendramodi ने जहाज से सर्विस चालू की है इस जहाज की क्षमता एक बार मे 50 ट्रक, 60 बसे, 200 कारे, 350 मोटरसाइकिल, 600 लोगो को, और समय सिर्फ आधे घंटे में,
????️???????? pic.twitter.com/yeBHOgSitS

— श्री हेमन्तसिंह मोजावत हल्दीघाटी (@MojawatHemant) September 20, 2020

Fact-check

Alt News performed a reverse image search on Google using InVid and found that this video was widely shared with a similar viral text in 2018 as well.

Next, we performed a keyword search on Twitter and found that this “state of the art” ferry service was initiated between Bharuch’s cargo port Dahej and Bhavnagar’s cargo port Ghogha by the Gujarat government on October 22, 2017, just two months before the state assembly elections.

Ghogha-Dahej Ferry Service will boost connectivity and infrastructure in Gujarat. pic.twitter.com/Hed5BoaT9V

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) October 21, 2017

Unlike the social media claim, the above video uploaded by PM Modi states that the ferry would take one hour to cover the distance of 31 km, and can carry up to 70-80 trucks, 100 light motor vehicles, and 500 passengers.

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Google Map location of Ghogha Dahej Ro-Ro Ferry Service has multiple pictures of the ferry uploaded by users. We found an image of a ferry that is identical to the ferry spotted in the viral video.

Just over a year after the ferry was launched, The Times of India reported in 2018 that the travel by sea would not benefit people from cities other than Bhavnagar because it neither saves them time nor money. In 2019, The Print reported that ferry service was suspended. “The ferry service operator, Indigo Seaways Private Limited, in the Gulf of Khambhat has decided to sell the vessel, Island Jade, that Modi rode during the inauguration of the service in 2017 ahead of the Gujarat assembly elections,” per the report.

In February 2020, The Indian Express reported that dredging led the ferry to break down four times within a period of 12 months and it has been suspended since late 2019. The report also stated that Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB) officials forewarned that it is likely that there could be “a situation in the future where ferry operation comes to a standstill due to GMB being unable to maintain the required draft in the channel.”

As of today, DG Sea Connect, the official website for booking ferry tickets, states that the services are suspended due to unsafe navigation depth of water.

Therefore, the capacity of a suspended ferry service from Bhavnagar to Bharuch in Gujarat was exaggerated on social media. The ferry service is routinely touted as a “state of the art” initiative by PM Modi even as it remains non-functional since late 2019.

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