Shipping route through Bangladesh to connect India's North-East with West Bengal
"Cargo and passenger ships from Assam and the northeast will be connected to Haldia via Bangladesh," India's Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal said
India has begun to build a new shipping route through Bangladesh to connect its North-Eastern with West Bengal regions, India's Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal said on Saturday (8 January).
Work has begun for waterways along the Brahmaputra and Barak rivers and cargo and passenger ships from Assam and India's northeast will be connected to Haldia in West Bengal via Bangladesh, Sonowal said while speaking at the "Brahmaputra River Conclave" at the ongoing Northeast Festival, reports the Economic Times.
He said transformation through transportation is the idea behind the revamping of waterways as means of communication.
"Work has already begun to pave way for national waterways (Brahmaputra and Barak) to facilitate movement of cargo ships. Cargo and passenger ships from Assam and the northeast will be connected to Haldia via Bangladesh. The work of dredging has already begun," Sarbananda Sonowal said.
He added that coastal and maritime shipping will get a boost with opening up of the northeastern markets, adding: "We must not limit ourselves to the Brahmaputra. We must go beyond and develop waterways through other rivers like Aie, Dhansiri, Manas etc."
"All the eight states must come together and work towards the region's development," Sonowal added.
Director of Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) A Selvakumar made a presentation on measures taken for revamping river networks in the country's northeast.