Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 18, 2026 inaugurated and laid foundation stones for infrastructure projects worth over ₹830 crore in ports, railways, and inland waterways at Singur in Hooghly district, West Bengal. The headline project is the foundation stone for an Extended Port Gate System at Balagarh, which will house an Inland Water Transport (IWT) terminal and a Road Over Bridge. Spread over 900 acres, the Balagarh IWT terminal is designed to handle 2.7 million tonnes of cargo annually, decongesting Kolkata docks, lowering logistics costs along the Hooghly and strengthening National Waterway-1 on the Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly system. Modi flagged off three new Amrit Bharat Express trains from Kolkata to Anand Vihar Terminal (Delhi), Banaras and Tambaram (Chennai), alongside the commissioning of the Jayrambati-Barogopinathpur-Maynapur new rail line, which delivers direct connectivity in Bankura district for commuters, students and pilgrims visiting Tarkeshwar and Bishnupur. A state-of-the-art electric catamaran was inaugurated in Kolkata — one of six indigenous hybrid vessels built by Cochin Shipyard for zero-emission river transport, using lithium-titanate battery technology for short turnaround charging. The catamarans are expected to support river tourism and last-mile urban mobility on the Hooghly. Modi said the projects would transform Hooghly into a warehousing and trading hub and generate thousands of jobs.