In February 2025, the shipping company Arkas Italia announced the launch of a container service between Turkey and India, named India Med Service, which, when combined with the Italy Turkey Express, provides a transit time of approximately thirty days between Italy and India. According to the company, a container takes 31 days to travel from Genoa to Nhava Sheva and 34 days from the Ligurian port to Mundra. Containers depart on the weekly Italy Turkey Express service from the ports of Genoa, La Spezia, and Salerno to Istanbul. This route also includes calls at Gemlik, Gebze, and Aliaga. In the Turkish city, the containers are transferred onto vessels operating the India Med Service, which reaches the two Indian ports with stopovers at Evyap, Aliaga, Mersin, Aqaba, Jeddah, and on the return journey, Alexandria in Egypt, before completing the rotation in Istanbul. This service is carried out in collaboration with Parekh Group and initially operates with four container ships of 2,500-2,800 teu, which will increase to five by June.
