Sarbananda Sonowal said this will also boost tourism potential
IH News Desk
REGIONAL, July 15, 2024: During the Stakeholder's Conference at Dimapur Monday, Union Minister of Ports, Shipping & Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal Monday announced major initiatives to enhance the waterways potential of Nagaland. Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio and Sonowal announced the development of Tizu Zunki (National Waterways 101) and the collaboration between the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) and the Transport Department of Nagaland to study navigation feasibility.
They also announced plans to develop the tourism potential of Doyang River Lake with community jetties and study Ro Pax ferries to boost the state's tourism potential.
The conference was attended by senior officials from the Government of India and the Government of Nagaland. Sonowal asserted that waterways are the most economical, sustainable and efficient mode of transportation and called upon stakeholders like transporters, EXIM traders, business interests and vessel owners to utilize the opportunities provided by revamped waterways.
Rio and Sonowal called upon the youth of the region to train in maritime skills at the Maritime Skill Development Centre to avail employment opportunities in the marine sector. The IWAI will conduct a feasibility study of IWT in Nagaland, examining fairway development, navigational aids, terminal with minimum infrastructure, skill development and vessel procurement.
The Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways (MoPSW) via the IWAI has been working towards empowering and enabling the complex and dynamic waterways of the region through multiple projects, including the Kaladaan Multimodal Transit Transport Project, linking multiple NWs with the Indo Bangladesh Protocol Route (IBPR), developing fairways on IBPR and declaring Ports of Call.
The Tizu River in Nagaland flows into the Chindown river, the third largest tributary of the Irrawaddy River, also known as Ningthi River in Myanmar. The Chindown River then enters the Irrawaddy River, the largest river in Myanmar, which drains into the Andaman Sea via the Irrawaddy Delta, providing an alternative for cargo movement from the Northeast to international trade routes.
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