Inaugural Meeting of Inland Waterways Development Council (IWDC)

January 8, 2024

The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) under the Shipping Ministry is hosting the first meeting of recently constituted Inland Waterways Development Council (IWDC) on January 8th, 2023 in Kolkata. The day-long meeting on board vessel MV Ganga Queen will see participation from central and states ministers, officials and domain experts to discuss advancing India’s river transportation sector.

Unveiling Key Initiatives

The Shipping Minister will be unveiling IWAI’s river cruise tourism roadmap targeting 2047 and guidelines pushing green transition of inland vessels using alternative fuels like methanol, biofuels etc.

Fostering PPPs

The event will also witness signing of MoUs between IWAI and private companies to boost private investment across different segments like vessel construction, cargo transportation and building terminal infrastructure along national waterways.

Development Agenda

Sessions at the meeting will delve into promotion of eco-friendly passenger vessels, optimizing cargo transport efficiency on inland waterways, fostering fairway development via dredging etc.

Growth Targets for Cargo and Cruise Sectors

The Ministry aims to raise inland waterways’ cargo modal share from 2% currently to 5% under Maritime India Vision 2030. The 2047 goals envision cargo volumes to rise from 120 million tonnes per annum presently to over 500 million tonnes.

Progress of Projects in West Bengal

In West Bengal itself, under central government’s Sagarmala initiative, over 60 inland waterways development projects worth ₹16,300 crore are at various implementation stages, including 19 projects already completed.

So the newly constituted IWDC platform signals concerted national efforts to tap the immense potential of inland waterways for decongesting land routes, enabling energy-efficient transportation and boosting regional connectivity.

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