SETC buses going via ECR may be moved to Anna Nagar West depot from CMBT
At present, the CMBT operates 592 buses, with 400 scheduled to be moved to Kuthambakkam. Officials added that the remaining 142 mofussil buses and 50 SETC buses will also need to be relocated to a new facility to fully phase out the CMBT.
The CMBT, which was built in 2002 at a cost of Rs 102 crore, spans 37 acres of land and has been operational for over two decades.
Official sources attached to CMDA and transport department told TNIE that the new Kuthambakkam bus terminus, situated near Thirumazhisai along the Chennai-Bengaluru bypass, is nearing completion. Built at a cost of `427 crore, it is expected to be inaugurated by August or September.
Once operational, TNSTC and SETC buses serving destinations such as Vellore, Krishnagiri, Walajah, Hosur, Tirupattur, and Bengaluru will be shifted from CMBT to the Kuthambakkam facility. This will leave CMBT with only a limited number of services to Puducherry, Cuddalore, Nagapattinam, and a few other locations. These remaining buses are also slated for relocation, with the Anna Nagar West depot being a key option under consideration, said an official.
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Homeporting of large cruise ships is not merely a logistical operation, it can be a catalyst for economic growth and job creation. In 2016, Costa NeoClassica, a foreign vessel featuring a casino, theatre, disco, ballroom and a 1,300 sq m wellness centre, chose Mumbai as its home port for three months and completed seven voyages. Its ripple effects were highlighted by the government in a 2017 paper, which states a cruise vessel with a capacity of 3,000 passengers can generate employment for nearly 1,000 people when it uses an Indian port as its home base. The ripple effect extends to local businesses. With each passenger spending at least $70-100 a day on land excursions, a cruise ship fuels substantial daily transactions, injecting fresh energy into tourism, retail and service sectors. 'We believe India could have multiple home ports for foreign cruise vessels by 2029,' says Rajiv Jalota, former chairman, Mumbai Port Authority. 'The government's vision is to enable homeporting of at least one cruise ship each in Goa, Chennai, Kochi and Visakhapatnam, apart from one or two in Mumbai.' Jalota says discussions are at an early stage on launching open-jaw cruises from Port Blair to Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia. In open-jaw cruises, departure and arrival ports are different. 'If the Port Blair blueprint materialises, passengers can fly to the Andaman Islands and board a cruise ship for the onward voyage,' he says. Global cruise giants are eager to expand into Indian waters but, Jalota says, some operators are lobbying hard for additional tax benefits. According to Krishan Arora, partner, Grant Thornton Bharat , the government has already streamlined the tax issues. He says a simplified tax regime, effective from April 2025, allows foreign cruise operators to bypass cumbersome audits and filings by opting for a fixed percentage of their receipts to be treated as taxable income. He also highlights another recent reform— the removal of import duties on foreign cruise ships temporarily operating along India's coastline. 'This opens up the Indian market for seasonal and short-term cruise deployments, a model followed globally but previously impractical in India due to tax barriers,' he adds. While ship-wise passenger data isn't publicly available, at least two senior government officials point out that MV Empress is singlehandedly driving much of the recent surge in numbers, a matter of concern considering that this French-built ship is 35 years old. They also say the vessel's Delhi-based parent company, Waterways Leisure Tourism, is planning to acquire another cruise ship in the next couple of months. Jurgen Bailom, CEO of Cordelia Cruises, has declined to comment. One thing is clear: the success of cruise liners will depend not just on competitive pricing, but on how they tailor experiences to suit Indian travellers. Take Nayan Goel , 35, an FMCG wholesaler from Lucknow, who flew to Chennai with his wife Sweety and son Parth, to board the MV Empress, paying Rs 1,78,000 for a five-night cruise in an ocean-view cabin. Among all the highlights of the voyage, one detail stands out for him. 'The restaurant on Deck 5, Starlight, serves vegetarian Jain food,' he says with a smile.
