Sarbananda Sonowal Launches Waterways Projects Worth Rs 308 Cr in Northeast

Union Minister of Ports, Shipping & Waterways and Ayush, Shri Sarbananda Sonowal unveiled projects worth Rs 308 crore for the northeastern region in Guwahati on Tuesday.

The event was simultaneously held at Bogibeel in Dibrugarh, Badarpur in Karimganj, IWAI port in Dhubri as well as Sonamura in Tripura.

Sonowal inaugurated Passenger-cum-Cargo terminal at Bogibeel near Dibrugarh, the Inland Water Transport Terminal at Sonamura in Tripura and upgraded terminals in Assam's Karimganj & Badarpur. This terminal is said to play a pivotal role in rejuvenating IWT in the region for both cargo and passenger movement, paving the way for the growth of trade and commerce.

He also laid the foundation stones for the construction of Custom Immigration Office in Dhubri as well as the construction of the compound wall for IWAI Jogighopa terminal.

The newly inaugurated Bogibeel terminal is being built with an investment of nearly Rs 50 crore. This project includes cargo & passenger berths, approach & other internal roads, a transit shed, open storage area, truck parking area, passenger waiting area. It will also lead to increase in eco-tourism as well as improve the economies of scale for existing major trade like tea, polymer, coal, fertilizer among others. The length of this terminal will be extended to 100 metres and the construction will start immediately. An integrated officer for Immigration, Customs & IWAI at Bogibeel is also being constructed at a cost of Rs 18 Crore. A project for bank protection and Extension of jetty at Bogibeel Terminal at a cost of Rs 12 Cr would also be initiated immediately.

The IWT terminal at Sonamura is developed with an investment of Rs 6.91 crore. The upgraded terminals at Karimganj and Badarpur was completed with an investment of Rs 6.40 crore. The IWT Terminal at Sonamura has the potential to attract transboundary trade including commodities like bagged cement, horticulture, consumer products, and other local goods transported via road between India and Bangladesh. This jetty is also being developed as a multi-purpose jetty to support movement of passengers on ferries between the two countries. The renovated and upgraded terminals at Karimganj and Badarpur will further ease and increase the export activities & commodities.

The projects have major influence in districts of Cachar, Karimganj & Hailakandi in Assam and adjoining states of Mizoram, Tripura, Manipur and Meghalaya due to the presence of cement industry, stone crushers, coal deposits, food processing units, tea estates, etc.

Speaking on the occasion, Shri Sonowal said, “Under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi our rich and complex web of waterways are being developed with major projects launched here today. Modi Ki Guarantee is powering the waterways of the North East towards Viksit Bharat. The terminals at Bogibeel will act as a catalyst of economic development for the region, further amplifying trade opportunities for upper Assam as well as Arunachal Pradesh. The Sonamura terminal in Tripura will further trans-boundary trade between India and Bangladesh. The Karimganj and Badarpur terminals will also power trade opportunities. All these projects will go a long way towards realising the vision of Narendra Modi ji towards the North east acting as the powerhouse of India’s growth towards becoming Viksit Bharat.”

The Union Minister also laid foundation stones for construction of Customs Immigration Office in Dhubri with an investment of Rs 7.5 crore. The construction of boundary wall will also start at Jogighopa terminal in Goalpara. The wall for IWAI Jogighopa terminal, which is being built at a cost of Rs 18 Crore, will secure the terminal. Six tourist jetties in NER at a cost of Rs 8.45 Cr. at Jogighopa, Tezpur, Bishwanathghat, Neamati, Sadiya, Bindakota would also be constructed. Three of these has already been provided and rest of the three will be provided soon. This project is introduced to upgrade the existing infrastructure along NW-2 and recognising the huge potential for cargo, passenger transportation, riverine tourism.

Two Electric Catamarans at Guwahati will be deployed in Guwahati by August, 2024. The Electric Catamarans, developed by Cochin Shipyard Limited at a cost of Rs 36 crore, will enhance communication facilities for the people of Guwahati. The 50 pax Electric Hybrid Catamaran will be used for cross-river ferry and pilgrim tourism at Guwahati. It will improve the economies of scale for existing major trade like coal, stone chips, polymer, fertiliser etc through IBP route and from Bhutan through waterways and also encourage employment & economic growth. 19 passenger vessels for NW-2 & NW-16 would be provided and two Pontoon Terminals on NW-2 would be constructed for Rs 25 crore.

Elaborating the scope of work proposed to be done for furthering the strength of waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal said, “Our Cabinet under the visionary leadership of the Prime Minister recently approved the signing of the BIMSTEC Agreement on Maritime Transport Cooperation. This Agreement in the spirit of our Neighborhood First Policy will herald seamless movement of water-borne cargo amongst the seven BIMSTEC countries. This Agreement will result in enhanced trade and commerce, reduced logistic costs as a result of removal of administrative and procedural delays, increase in manufacturing and enhanced employment opportunities. We have also adopted a Roadmap for River Cruise Tourism for developing multiple other routes for cruise tourism on other National Waterways. Rs 45,000 Crore would be spent for development of River Cruise Tourism in the coming years. This shows the immense potential that rests in the 20,000 kilometers long and vibrant inland waterways of our country."

The strategic significance is underscored by a substantial investment of over Rs 1,000 crore in the past couple of years dedicated to advancement of these waterways in the North-East. Projects such as Comprehensive development of NW-2, Ship repair facility at Pandu (Rs 208 Cr.), Jogighopa IWT terminal (Rs 64 Cr.), last mile connectivity to Pandu port through alternative road from Pandu Port to NH-27 (Rs 180 Cr.) are some of the projects that are already underway. IWAI has endeavoured to develop NW-1, passing through the states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal, as a reliable cargo logistics route under ₹5,000 crore under Jal Marg Vikas Project (JMVP). From 2013-14 onwards, the cargo movement has increased in the last decade from a mere 6.89 million Ton in 2014 to 126.15 Million tonnes in 2022-23, showing a mammoth growth of 1,700 percent.

Also Read: Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal to Unveil Rs. 254 Crore Projects at Pandu Port