News Regional Office of Inland Waterways Authority

• 27 Jan 2025

Why in News? 

The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) upgraded its sub-office in Varanasi into a regional office to effectively implement Inland Water Transport (IWT) activities on National Waterway-1 (NW-1) along the River Ganga.  

 Key Points 

• IWAI Regional Offices: 
  • The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) operates under the Union Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways. 
  • It currently has five regional offices in Guwahati (Assam), Patna (Bihar), Kochi (Kerala), Bhubaneswar (Odisha), and Kolkata (West Bengal). 
  • The newly established regional office in Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh), becomes the sixth. 
    • The Varanasi office will manage operations over a 487-kilometre stretch from Majhua to the Varanasi Multi-Modal Terminal (MMT) and up to Prayagraj. 
    • It will also oversee works related to other National Waterways (NWs) in Uttar Pradesh. 
• Jal Marg Vikas Project (JMVP): 
  • The office will prioritize implementing the World Bank-supported Jal Marg Vikas Project (JMVP). 
  • It aims to enhance the capacity of River Ganga (NW-1) through: 
    • River conservancy works such as bandalling and maintenance dredging. 
    • Construction of key infrastructure, including MMTs at Varanasi, Sahibganj, and Haldia, an intermodal terminal at Kalighat, and a new navigational lock at Farakka (West Bengal). 
    • Promoting cruise tourism and seamless cargo movement along the waterway. 
    • Development of Community Jetties: 
      • Under JMVP, 60 community jetties are being constructed across four states: Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, and West Bengal. 
      • These jetties aim to benefit local commuters, small and marginal farmers, artisans, and fishing communities. 
      • The Varanasi Regional Office will monitor and ensure efficient execution of these activities. 
• National Waterways in Uttar Pradesh: 
  • Uttar Pradesh has around 30 rivers, with 10 declared as National Waterways. 
  • The office will oversee development works on River Ganga and its tributaries, including Betwa, Chambal, Gomti, Tons, Varuna, Gandak, Ghagra, Karamnasa, and Yamuna. 

 Inland Waterways Authority of India 

• It came into existence on 27^th October 1986 for development and regulation of inland waterways for shipping and navigation. 
• It primarily undertakes projects for development and maintenance of IWT infrastructure on national waterways through grants received from the Ministry of Shipping. 

 Inland Water Transport (IWT) 

• About: 
  • Inland water transport refers to the transportation of people, goods, and materials via waterways such as rivers, canals, lakes, and other navigable bodies of water that are located within a country's boundaries. 
  • IWT is the most economical mode of transportation, especially for bulk cargo like coal, iron ore, cement, food grains and fertilizer. Presently, it remains underutilized at a share of 2% in India’s modal mix. 
• Socio-Economic Benefits of IWT: 
  • Cheaper operating cost and relatively lesser fuel consumption 
  • Less polluting mode of transportation 
  • Lesser requirement of land relative to other modes of transportation 
  • More environment friendly mode of transportation 
  • Moreover, waterways can be used for recreational purposes such as boating and fishing.