A landmark container cargo consignment will sail on inland waterway from the Haldia Dock Complex, Kolkata to the Inland Waterways Authority of India terminal at Pandu in Guwahati. It is to begin on November 4, 2019. The main objective of the waterway is to improve connectivity to the North Eastern Region. The containers will carry edible oil, petrochemicals, beverages, etc.
About the voyage
- The voyage will sail for a 12 to 15 days. It is 1425 km long.
- It is expected to establish technical and commercial viability of the IWT (Inland Waterway Transport) route.
- The water way is to be integrated with National Waterway-1 (river Ganga), NW-97 (Sunderbans), NW-2 (River Brahmaputra), Indo-Bangladesh Protocol (IBP) route.
India-Bangladesh
- The Protocol on Inland Water Transit and Trade (PIWTT) between India and Bangladesh will allow mutually beneficial arrangements for the use of waterways for movement of goods between the countries.
- Two stretches of Bangladesh waterways Sirajganj-Daikawa and Ashuganj-Zakiganj are being developed on the IBP route at a total cost of Rs 305.84 crores. 80% of the project cost is being borne by India. These two routes will provide seamless navigation to and from North East India.