Indo-Bangla inland waterway connectivity route to be extended till India's Gomati district

The international inland waterway connectivity route between Bangladesh and India would be extended by 40 km inside the Indian territory to the adjoining Gomati district, said Tripura Transport Special Secretary Sandeep R Rathore, reports the Indian Express. 

At present, the route extends to Sonamura in Tripura's Sepahijala district.

"The transport protocol route, which was launched in May last year, is being upgraded and extended to encourage water transport through River Gomati," Tripura Transport Special Secretary Sandeep R Rathore said addressing reporters at the state secretariat on Monday (31 October).

He added that a package of Rs24.52 crore was sanctioned for the construction of nine floating jetties and dredging of the river. The responsibility to dredge the route was given to India's Public Works Department (Water Resource) and the Tourism Department, and a tender was floated inviting bids for the construction of the jetties.

"In order to extend the Sonamura-Daudkandi protocol route up to Maharani in Udaipur of Gomati district, 40 km from Sonamura, a proposal has been sent to the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways. The Ministry of Home Affairs and the Central Board of Indirect Tax & Customs have already given their consent in their respect," the Indian official said.

Apart from the dredging and upgradation of navigability on River Gomati, the state government has sent a proposal to set up a trans-border trade connectivity network with Chattogram Port of Bangladesh through River Feni that flows between the two countries.

The proposal sent to India's Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways has sought to conduct an automated hydrographic survey on River Feni by the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI). The IWAI has already completed the work for the hydrographic survey.

Meanwhile, a floating jetty was constructed at Srimantapur near Sonamura and handed over to the Land Ports Authority of India (LPAI) for operation, maintenance, and management. The work for setting up a permanent jetty is in progress and an agency selected for the work has started work on site.

Tripura is also developing a multi-modal logistic hub in Sabroom under the South Tripura district. A special economic zone, one integrated check post, and a rail yard are part of the hub, which is expected to offer Tripura better connectivity with Southeast Asia.  Tripura Additional Transport Secretary Subrata Choudhury said the multimodal logistic hub would provide greater roadway, railway, waterway, and airway connectivity.

The Indo-Bangla Friendship Bridge that was inaugurated on 9 March, along with the other projects would provide a thrust to inter-country trade, commerce, and tourism, the special secretary said.