IWAI charts new course for inland water transport with major approvals at 198th Board Meeting

THEBUSINESSBYTES BUREAU

NEW DELHI, JUNE 25, 2025

In a significant boost to India’s inland water transport (IWT) ecosystem, the 198th Board Meeting of the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) was held in New Delhi on Wednesday, resulting in a series of transformative decisions aimed at unlocking the vast potential of the country’s waterways — particularly in the North Eastern Region (NER).

A major highlight of the meeting was the green light for establishing three tourist jetties at Silghat, Bishwanath Ghat, and Guijan, along with a tourist-cum-cargo jetty at Neamati in Assam. These strategically planned facilities are set to revolutionize connectivity in the region by facilitating seamless cargo and passenger movement, while also acting as key nodes in linking regional and national tourist circuits via inland waterways. The initiative is expected to act as a catalyst for economic development, trade, and tourism across the North East.

In a forward-looking move to build technical capacity and skilled manpower in the IWT sector, the Board approved the establishment of a Regional Centre of Excellence (RCoE) at Bogibeel, Dibrugarh in Assam. Designed to train over 5,300 participants, the RCoE will serve as a knowledge and training hub aligned with the Inland Vessels Act, 2021, marking a significant step towards professionalizing and future-proofing the sector.

Further strengthening its infrastructure footprint in Assam, IWAI has approved the development of a prime 2,154 sq. metre land parcel in Fancy Bazar, Guwahati. To be executed by the Indian Port Rail and Ropeway Corporation Ltd. (IPRCL), the multi-storeyed complex will house the Guwahati Regional Office, a Maritime Skill Development Centre (MSDC), and other key maritime institutions.

To augment repair and maintenance capacity on National Waterway-1, the Board has tasked the National Technology Centre for Ports, Waterways and Coasts (NTCPWC) at IIT Madras with preparing a Detailed Project Report (DPR) for a new Ship Repair Facility in Patna, Bihar. This facility, earlier announced by Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, is poised to become a game-changer in inland shipping logistics along the Ganga.

In West Bengal, the Board also approved the development of an extended port gate system at Balagarh by the Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port, further strengthening multimodal logistics connectivity in eastern India.

In a visionary move, the IWAI Board announced the creation of the Indian Waterway Congress, modelled after the Indian Road Congress. The new platform will bring together stakeholders from government, academia, and industry to foster innovation, standardization, and the adoption of global best practices in the IWT sector.

In line with its expanding responsibilities, IWAI also approved a cadre restructuring plan proposed by the National Institute of Smart Government. The revamped structure is intended to better equip the Authority to meet the dynamic challenges of the growing sector and deliver on ambitious goals related to cargo movement and cruise tourism.

Under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the strategic guidance of Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, IWAI is aggressively scaling up inland waterway infrastructure from Gujarat to Kerala and Jammu & Kashmir to Arunachal Pradesh. Apart from enhancing capacity on National Waterway-1, the Authority is actively working on NW-2, NW-3, and NW-16 through terminal development, fairway dredging, and the deployment of advanced navigation aids.