Context:
Murmansk port, the beginning point in NSR sees rising Indian cargo traffic, with India-bound goods being the largest share.
About North Sea Route (NSR):
- Shortest shipping route between Europe and countries of the Asia-Pacific region
- Spans across 4 seas of the Arctic Ocean – Kara, Laptev, East Siberian, and Chukchi Sea.
- It is a 5,600-km-long route.
- Begins at the boundary between the Barents and the Kara seas and ends in the Bering Strait (Provideniya Bay).
- Importance –
- Energy and time-saving compared to the normally used Suez Canal.
- It is one-third of the distance of the traditional route through the Suez Canal.
Chennai-Vladivostok Maritime Corridor (CVMC) project between India and Russia is an organized international container transit through the NSR. It is expected to reduce transport time from 32 days to 12 days and costs by around 30%. It passes through the Sea of Japan, the South China Sea, and Malacca Strait.
Suez Canal:
- An artificial sea-level waterway
- Runs north to south across the Isthmus of Suez in Egypt.
- Connects Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea.
- It separates the African continent from Asia.
- Runs between Port Said harbor and the Gulf of Suez
- It provides the shortest maritime route between Europe and the lands lying around the Indian and western Pacific oceans.
- Economic Importance –
- It is one of the world’s most heavily used shipping lanes, carrying over 12% of world trade by volume.
- Provides a crucial link for oil, natural gas and cargo being shipped from East to West.
Source: The Hindu
Previous Year Question
Between India and East Asia, the navigation-time and distance can be greatly reduced by which of the following?
1. Deepening the Malacca straits between Malaysia and Indonesia.
2. Opening a new canal across the Kra isthmus between the Gulf of Siam and the Andaman Sea.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
[UPSC Civil Services Exam – 2011 Prelims]
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer: (b)
