The Ministry of Ports, Shipping andWaterways has successfully conducted the maiden voyage of foodgrains via inland waterways from Patna to Pandu through Bangladesh in Guwahati.  

The Minister of Ports, Shipping & Waterways and AYUSH, Sarbananda Sonowal along with Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday welcomed the self-propelled vessel, MV Lal Bahadur Shastri, carrying a total of 200 tonnes of foodgrains for Food Corporation of India (FCI) as it completed the maiden pilot run from Patna to Pandu via Bangladesh. 

The vessel sailed from Patna on NW-1 (river Ganga) and passed through Bhagalpur, Manihari, Sahibganj, Farakka, Tribeni, Kolkata, Haldia, Hemnagar; Indo-Bangladesh Protocol (IBP) route through Khulna, Narayanganj, Sirajganj, Chilmari and NW-2 through Dhubri, and Jogighopa covering a distance of 2,350 km, Shipping Ministry said in a statement.

“This historic feat will usher a new era of growth for all the states of Northeast India. The waterways will cut through the landlocked access which has been crippling development in the region for long. The waterways not only remove this geographical hindrance on the road of progress in the region but also provides an economical, swift and convenient transportation for the businesses and people of the region,” it added.

The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) is planning to run a fixed schedule sailing between national waterways-1 (NW1) and NW2 heralding a new age of inland water transport for Assam & the Northeast India.

MV Ram Prasad Bismil vessel

Another vessel MV Ram Prasad Bismil with two barges Kalpana Chawla and APJ Abdul Kalam started voyage from Haldia on February 17 and is on the way to Pandu. The vessel is carrying 1800 tonnes Tata steel and already reached Bangladesh Border at Dhubri. The ODC (over Dimensional cargo) of Numaligarh Bio-refinery reached Silghat on February 15 from Haldia through IWT via IBP route. Another ODC (250 tonnes) consignment is also on the way to Silghat.

“Today marks the beginning of a new age of inland water transport in Assam. This is going to provide the business community a viable, economic and ecological alternative. The seamless cargo transportation is a journey of unfulfilled desires and aspirations of the people of Assam. We are confident that the cargo movement via waterways is going to play a pivotal role in energising India’s northeast as the engine of growth,” Sonowal said.

The sustained effort to rejuvenate the historical trade routes via Bangladesh got a fillip under PM Gati Shakti.The integrated development plan, under PM Gati Shakti, has been envisioned in order to amp up swift movement of cargo over Brahmaputra.

Regular service planned

The IWAI is also planning to run a regular scheduled service on these routes. The protocol on Inland water transit and Trade (PIWTT) between India and Bangladesh will be optimally beneficial when we can unlock the value from the cargo trade in the region. 

To improve the navigability, two stretches of IBP routes — Sirajganj-Daikhowa and Ashuganj-Zakiganj — are also being developed at a cost of ₹305.84 crore on an 80:20 share basis (80 per cent being borne by India and 20 per cent by Bangladesh). 

The development of these stretches is expected to provide seamless navigation to NER via the IBP route. The contracts for dredging on the two stretches for providing and maintaining requisite depth for a period of seven years (from 2019 to 2026) are underway. 

Once the IBP Routes five and six from Maia near Farakka in India to Aricha in Bangladesh, the IWT distance connecting NW1 to NW2 (North Eastern Region) will further reduced by nearly 1,000 km, which will reduce time and cost to a great extent.

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