Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW), Sarbananda Sonowal, today reviewed ongoing projects in Assam and the rest of the North East with senior officials from the ministry, the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), Public Works Department (PWD), Indian Port Rail and Ropeway Corporation Limited (IPRCL) and Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL).
Sonowal and the officials considered feasibility studies for inland water transport (IWT) on Umiam Lake and the Umngot River in Meghalaya. The latter has been assigned the designation of National Waterway (NW) 106.
The central government is developing key infrastructure projects along NW2 (Brahmaputra) and NW16 (Barak), including the construction of passenger vessels of various capacities, terminal facilities and capacity-building initiatives, a press release stated today. Sonowal also reviewed progress on the proposed IWT project at Doyang Lake and assessed the potential of Noune and Shilloi Lakes in Nagaland for water sports and tourism. Feasibility studies for IWT development on the Tiawng and Chhimtuipui rivers in Mizoram were also considered.
The minister underscored the need to complete the projects on time in line with the broader vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Viksit Bharat. “North East is the topmost priority for PM Narendra Modi. Our work in the region must sync with the vision of Viksit Bharat,” asserted Sonowal at the meeting.
Speaking afterwards, the Union Minister said, “We are developing robust waterway infrastructure in Assam and the North East with projects worth Rs 1,000 crore on the anvil, targeted for completion by 2026. In the last two years, more than Rs 1,000 crore has been invested, with Rs 300 crore worth of projects already completed. Following my review of ongoing works in the region, we are on track to complete the remaining Rs 700 crore projects by the end of 2025. These efforts aim to boost cargo and passenger movement, improve last-mile connectivity, promote economic growth in the North East and align with the broader vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat through sustainable and inclusive transport solutions.”
He also spoke about the Maritime Skill Development Centre in Guwahati and the Centre of Excellence for Inland Water Transport in Dibrugarh, which are training a workforce to be equipped for inland and global maritime opportunities. These efforts are part of a larger push to skill, empower and employ our youth in logistics, cargo handling, vessel operations and more, especially as infrastructure on NW2 and NW16 is expanded, he said.
To further enhance cruise tourism and cargo handling capacity across NW2 and NW16, over Rs 1,500 crore has been earmarked for key projects scheduled to be completed by 2027-28. These include construction of modern jetties equipped with onshore facilities at Silghat, Bishwanath Ghat, Neamati Ghat and Guijan.
Sonowal, a Rajya Sabha MP from Assam, also noted progress on the proposed Water Metro services in Guwahati and Dibrugarh, with a Rs 315 crore investment and two electric catamarans being built by Cochin Shipyard Ltd. A Rs 100 crore cruise terminal in Guwahati and a Regional Centre of Excellence (RCoE) in Dibrugarh worth Rs 120 crore are also in the pipeline.
To ensure consistent navigability along the Brahmaputra, the Dredging Corporation of India (DCI) has been entrusted with maintaining a minimum assured draft of 2.5 metres from the Bangladesh border to Pandu in Guwahati under NW2 until 2026-27. For this effort, an additional Rs 191 crore has been sanctioned.
