Agreements between India and Bangladesh for river transportation will be honoured : Sonowal

GUWAHATI : Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Shri Sarbananda Sonowal, on Saturday said that there is a mutual understanding between India and Bangladesh and agreements signed between the two countries for river transportation will be honoured.

Operations along the Indo Bangladesh Protocol Route (IBPR) were underway as usual with both countries remaining in talks via diplomatic channels, Sonowal said while speaking at ‘The Assam Tribune-Dialogue 2024’ here.

“Our officials are interacting with Bangladesh authorities and the response is positive,” he said. The rich potential of the dynamic and complex waterways system of the Northeast will be realised as the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) is actively engaging with the respective state governments as well as initiating dialogue via stakeholders meet, Sonowal said.

One such meet has already taken place at Dimapur in which the Nagaland government participated actively while the next was scheduled to be held at Itanagar in Arunachal Pradesh soon.

“Our beautiful region of the Northeast is blessed with natural bounty with a complex and dynamic mix of water bodies which need to be carefully harnessed to ensure that sustainable development takes place in the region,” the Union Minister said

The ministry is working towards organising stakeholder meetings with state governments to identify, discuss and explore possibilities of waterways as a means for development, he added.

The ministry’s flagship programme ‘Sagarmala’ is all set to propel the country’s maritime sector to make India one of the top global maritime powers by 2047, Sonowal said.

“Under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, our ministry is upgrading our ports via mechanisation, modernisation and digitisation,” he said.

Before 2014, India’s maritime sector lacked an approach or a vision but now the effort has been to channelise our resources towards a port-led development and connectivity advancement, he said.

“Our efforts are also aimed at development of the coastal community which has resulted in tremendous response from the coastal areas of the country,” he said.

The Sagarmala programme, approved by the Union cabinet in 2015, envisions a total of 839 projects with an estimated investment of Rs 5.79 lakh crore, and is slated for completion by 2035.

Out of these, 262 projects, amounting to approximately Rs 1.40 lakh crore, have already been completed, while another 217 projects, valued at around Rs 1.65 lakh crore, are currently under active implementation.

These projects span multiple sectors and involve the coordinated efforts of central ministries, state governments, major ports, and various other agencies.

Speaking on the potential of Brahmaputra, Sonowal said the nodal waterways agency, the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), has been dredging the river and other important channels of transportation to ensure smooth transit of ferries and ships.

“We have made it mandatory that the dredging work performed by entities must bring in accountability as well as compliance for the smooth sailing of boats and ships,” he said.

The transit of large vessels to Numaligarh refinery as well as the success of world’s longest river cruise on MV Ganga Vilas from Varanasi to Dibrugarh show that the role of riverways as a viable, economic and environmentally sound mode of communication is being revived, he added.

The government is also working towards building infrastructure to support this renewed thrust on waterways, Sonowal said. 

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