India to Activate 76 Waterways Across 23 States by 2027
India has set an ambitious goal to operationalise 76 inland waterways by 2027, significantly expanding its inland transport network across 23 states and four Union Territories.
Union Minister for Ports, Shipping & Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal announced the plan during a consultative committee meeting on Inland Waterways Transport held in Mumbai on Monday. Inland water transport coverage, currently active in 11 states, is set to more than double, backed by projects worth ₹1,400 crore. The ministry aims to elevate cargo capacity to 156 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) by March 2026, drawing closer to the Maritime India Vision 2030 target of 200 MTPA. Key updates from the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) included major infrastructure developments, monthly longitudinal depth surveys across 10,000 km, and progress on regional connectivity through the proposed 4,067-km Regional Waterways Grid. This corridor will connect Varanasi to Dibrugarh and Karimganj via the India-Bangladesh Protocol route, with an expected cargo volume of 32.2 MMTPA by 2033. Sonowal highlighted the transformative role of inland waterways under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership, citing reforms such as the National Waterways Act, 2016, and the Inland Vessels Act, 2021. He also credited flagship schemes like Jal Marg Vikas, Arth Ganga, and Jal Samriddhi for accelerating development. On the infrastructure front, major corridors like NW-1 (Ganga) and NW-2 (Brahmaputra) are seeing terminal upgrades, ship repair facilities, and road linkages.
NW-16 (Barak) and NW-31 (Dhansiri) are being prepped to support the logistics needs of North-East India, including the Numaligarh Refinery expansion. Green transport remains a core focus, with the ministry advancing the Harit Nauka Guidelines. Efforts include introducing electric catamarans, hydrogen fuel vessels, and strengthening water metro systems in urban centres. The government is also nurturing India’s growing cruise tourism sector, with 15 cruise circuits now operational across 13 National Waterways. Three world-class terminals are being developed—one under construction in Kolkata and feasibility studies underway for terminals in Varanasi and Guwahati. Another four at Silghat, Neamati, Bishwanath Ghat, and Guijan are expected to launch by 2027. Minister of State Shantanu Thakur stressed that inland river tourism is not only an economic driver but a means to connect remote regions sustainably. He highlighted strategic public-private partnerships to boost luxury cruise operations on major rivers including the Ganga, Brahmaputra, Yamuna, and Narmada.
Members of Parliament from West Bengal, Odisha, Kerala, and Uttar Pradesh also attended the meeting, signalling pan-India political support for the initiative.
