The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) has signed MoUs worth around Rs 3,000 crore at India Maritime Week 2025 to strengthen inland water transport and industrial connectivity across the Northeast. Key agreements include a pact with Assam Petro-Chemicals Ltd to transport methanol and formalin via the Indo-Bangladesh Protocol Route and national waterways, and another with the Assam government to develop an Urban Water Transport system—Water Metro—in Tezpur, Guwahati and Dibrugarh.
Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal reviewed multiple ongoing projects across Assam, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Tripura, Nagaland and Meghalaya, reaffirming the Centre’s commitment to transform the region through modern IWT infrastructure. IWAI also signed MoUs to expand river cruise tourism, develop river lighthouses, induct modern tug-barges, and establish a Regional Centre of Excellence in Dibrugarh.
Additional projects are progressing across all Northeastern states, including new terminals, ferry services, jetties, and cruise tourism initiatives. Sonowal said over Rs 5,000 crore will be invested in the coming years to harness the region’s waterways as engines of economic growth and connectivity.