Guwahati: The maiden edition of the Inland Waterways Development Council (IWDC) culminated with many firsts in an effort to ramp up capacity and augment the viability of inland waterways of India. The meeting, chaired by Union Minister of Ports, Shipping & Waterways and Ayush, Sarbananda Sonowal, was attended by key stakeholders including ministerial representations from states as well as prominent stakeholders including policymakers and industry leaders.


The meeting, with an objective to enable inland waterways as conduits of economic growth and commerce in the country, committed an investment of Rs 45,000 crore for the development of river cruise tourism in India. Of this ambitious sum, an estimated Rs 35,000 crore has been earmarked for cruise vessels and another Rs 10,000 crore for the development of cruise terminal infrastructure at the end of ‘Amrit Kaal,’ by the year 2047.


To amp up inland waterways for cargo trade, an investment of Rs 15,200 crore has been made at the Global Maritime India Summit (GMIS) held in Mumbai in October 2023. This is likely to register a growth rate of more than 400 per cent, increasing the volume up to 500 Million Tonnes Per Annum (MTPA) by 2047. The Union Minister also launched ‘Harit Nauka’ guidelines and ‘River Cruise Tourism Roadmap, 2047’ at the inaugural session of IWDC in Kolkata on Monday, Union Minister Sonowal’s Guwahati media cell stated in a press release.


Speaking on the occasion, Union Minister Sonowal said, “India has been growing impressively. The immense potential of the blue economy must be realised as we work towards becoming a leader in the blue economy of the world. The IWDC was conceived with the objective to rejuvenate our rich, complex, and dynamic waterways. From the days of yore, waterways have been the conduit of economic growth and development of human civilization. However, these brilliant proven tracks of prosperity remained neglected for decades, resulting in a waste of invaluable wealth for the country. In order to resuscitate our waterways, IWDC is making an attempt with a modern approach, clear strategy, and towards a goal to ensure sustainable development for an ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ by the end of Amrit Kaal.”


At the IWDC, a roadmap was chalked out to enable capacity in an additional 26 waterways, fit for river cruise tourism from the operational strength of eight waterways. The number of cruise circuits with night stays is to be increased from 17 to 80 during the same time. In an effort to boost infrastructure in the inland waterways, the number of river cruise terminals has to be increased up to 185, registering a growth of 1,233 per cent from the present strength of 15 terminals, the release stated.


Building on the capacity of enhanced circuits, the cruise tourism traffic with night stays will be moved up from 5,000 to 1.20 lakh by 2047. Similarly, the local cruise tourism traffic on the national waterways without night stay is to be increased from two lakh to 15 lakh by 2047, it further mentioned.


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The one-day meet, held on board vessel MV Ganges Queen at the Kolkata Dock Complex, was organised by the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), the nodal agency for inland waterways in India, under the Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways, it stated.  


Adding further, Union Minister Sonowal said, “Inland waterways are the arteries of progress and the IWDC marks a pivotal stride in our commitment to harness their potential. With collaborative efforts and strategic initiatives, we aim to unlock the full spectrum of opportunities, fostering sustainable development and growth in the inland water transport sector. With the launch of ‘Harit Nauka-Guidelines for Green Transition of Inland Vessels,’ the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) embarked on a journey towards a sustainable and eco-friendly future for our inland waterways.”


“The roadmap had identified 30 plus additional potential routes for different cruise types, including long and short, recreational and heritage segments to attract all tourist categories. An action plan and roadmap, including route development, marketing strategy, infrastructure development and navigation, to effectively proceed with developing such additional river cruises is also ready,” he added.


The government, in alignment with its vision to enhance the role of Inland Water Transport (IWT), initiated various measures, including the flagship Jal Marg Vikas Project (JMVP) for the development of the Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly river system (NW-1). This project focused on cargo, Roll-on/roll-off (RoRo) and passenger ferry movement, along with the inclusion of small villages through community jetties, the release further stated.  


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