(a) whether the Government has formulated a scheme regarding inter-State river waterways;
(b) if so, the details thereof;
(c) whether the Government has invited domestic and foreign investment for development of river routes of Ganga/ Yamuna and their tributaries; and
(d) if so, the details thereof?
(a) & (b) To promote Inland Water Transport in the country, 111 waterways have been declared as National Waterways (NWs) under the National Waterways Act, 2016 spread over 24 States in the country which came into effect from 12th April, 2016. Based on the outcome of techno-economic feasibility and Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) of NWs, Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) has concluded that 23 NWs have been found viable for cargo movement and river waterways tourism purpose. The list of the 23 NWs viable for cargo movement is at Annex-1. Out of these, developmental activities have been taken up in 13 NWs. Some of these NWs viz. NW-1, NW-4, NW-5, NW-73, NW-100 pass through more than one state.
(c) & (d) With the technical and financial assistance of the World Bank, Jal Marg Vikas Project (JMVP) has been taken up at an estimated cost of Rs. 5369.18 crore (revised cost Rs. 4633.81 crore) for capacity augmentation of navigation on National Waterway-1 (NW-1) on the Haldia-Varanasi stretch of Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly River System for large barge movement. Details of JMVP with status as on 28.02.2021 is at Annex.2.
Annex. -1
LIST OF 23 NATIONAL WATERWAYS FOUND FEASIBLE FOR CARGO MOVEMENT
<pre>
Sl.
No. National Waterway No. Length (km) Details of Waterways STATES Status
1 National Waterway 1 1620 Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly River System (Allahabad- Haldia) Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand & West Bengal Development taken up with Assistance from World Bank Jal Marg Vikas Project
2 National Waterway 2 891 Brahmaputra River (Dhubri - Sadiya) Assam Development taken up as per approved SFC for FY 2020-21 to 2024-25
3 National Waterway 16 121 Barak River Assam
4 National Waterway 3 205 West Coast Canal (Kottapuram - Kollam), Champakara and Udyogmandal Canals Kerala Mostly Operational Waterways and development and maintenance work taken up.
5 National Waterway 4 82 Krishna River (Vijayawada – Muktyala) Andhra Pradesh
6 National Waterway 5 233 Dhamra-Paradip via Mangalagadi to Pankopal Odisha
7 National Waterway 8 29 Alappuzha- Changanassery Canal Kerala
8 National Waterway 9 40 Alappuzha-Kottayam – Athirampuzha Canal Kerala Alternate route: 11.5 km
9 National Waterway 27 17 Cumberjua River Goa
10 National Waterway 68 41 Mandovi River Goa
11 National Waterway 86 72 Rupnarayan River West Bengal
12 National Waterway 97 172 Sunderbans Waterway West Bengal
13 National Waterway 111 50 Zuari River Goa
14 National Waterway 10 45 Amba River Maharashtra Work to be taken subsequent to SFC/ EFC approval.
15 National Waterway 44 63 Ichamati River West Bengal
16 National Waterway 52 53 Kali River Karnataka
17 National Waterway 57 50 Kopili River Assam
18 National Waterway 73 226 Narmada River Maharashtra & Gujarat Substantial cargo moves in tidal waters/ river mouth under respective State Maritime Board. No interventions are contemplated by IWAI as of now.
19 National Waterway 83 31 Rajpuri Creek Maharashtra
20 National Waterway 85 31 Revadanda Creek - Kundalika River System Maharashtra
21 National Waterway 91 52 Shastri River - Jaigad Creek System Maharashtra
22 National Waterway 94 141 Sone River Bihar
23 National Waterway 100 436 Tapi River Maharashtra & Gujarat
</pre>
Annex.2
Major Projects of IWAI: Jal Marg Vikas Project (NW-1) Project.
Status of implementation as on 28.02.2021.
1. Jal Marg Vikas Project (JMVP) on National Waterway-1 (NW-1) from Haldia to Varanasi (1390 km) was approved by the CCEA on 03rdJanuary, 2018 at a cost of Rs. 5369.18 crore. The loan agreement with the World Bank was signed on 02ndFebruary, 2018.
2. The estimated cost of JMVP of Rs. 5369.18 crore (US$ 800.00 million) is to be utilized as per the following funding pattern:
(i) IBRD Loan- Rs.2,512.00 crore (US $ 375.00 million);
(ii) Government of India Counterpart Funds (budgetary allocation and proceeds from issue of infrastructure bonds: Rs.2,556.00 crore (US $ 380.00 million); and
(iii) Private sector participation under PPP mode: Rs. 301.00 crore (US $ 45.00 million).
3. Detailed Feasibility; Environmental & Social Impact Assessment; and Market Development Strategy Studies were carried out on NW-1 in February 2017, December, 2016 & November, 2017 to determine the development strategy on NW-1. Further, the detailed engineering for key infrastructure projects such as Varanasi MMT, Haldia MMT, Sahibganj MMT & Farakka Lock were prepared by the Engineering Consultant subsequently.
4. The following mandatory clearances were obtained in connection with the implementation of JMVP:
(i) Clearance under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 for passage of vessels through the Kashi Turtle Sanctuary, Varanasi on 12th June, 2017.
(ii) Coastal Regulation Zone clearance for the Haldia multimodal terminal on 06th November, 2017.
(iii) Clearances from the Ministry of WR, RD & GR and NGRBA for the new navigation lock at Farakka on 28th February, 2016.
(iv) MoEF&CC confirmed that inland waterways, terminals, jetties etc. are not covered under EIA Notification, 2006 requiring prior environmental clearance on 21st December, 2017.
5. Consequent to the review held on 10.06.2020 through teleconferencing by Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways under the chair of Secretary (Shipping) with the IWAI, the estimated cost JMVP was revised to Rs. 4,633.81 crore from the original estimated cost of Rs. 5,369.18 crore approved by the CCEA on 03.01.2018, thereby effecting a saving of Rs. 735.51 crore (USD 109.78 million) in the project cost. The savings comprise of Rs. 387.10 crore (USD 57.78 million) from the IBRD loan component and Rs. 348.41 crore from the counterpart fund component. The revised cost estimate also includes several activities aligned to the Arth Ganga Concept estimated to cost Rs. 746.00 crore. Consequently, on the request of IWAI/ Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways, Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) has requested the World Bank on 17.06.2020 for cancellation of USD 57.78 million from the overall IBRD loan for the JMVP. As a result, the IBRD loan component will get reduced to USD 317.22 million.
6. The project implementation is progressing as per time schedule. The project has achieved an overall financial progress of about 39.15% of the revised cost of JMVP and the physical progress is about 40.85%. Present status of civil works is as under:
• Constructions of multi-modal terminals at Varanasi and Sahibganj have been completed and that of the multimodal terminal at Haldia and the Navigational Lock at Farakka have achieved substantial progress with 96.85% and 80.37% respectively.
• Contracts for providing Least Assured Depth of 3 m and bottom channel width of 45 m on the stretch between Farakka – Kahalgaon, Sultanganj-Mahendrapur and Mahendrapur-Barh have been awarded on 09th April-2018, 12th April-2019 and 12th April-2019 respectively and are currently in progress with financial progress of Rs. 82.92 crore, Rs. 28.83 crore and Rs. 30.19 crore respectively.
• Dredging Management Plan (DMP) in consultation with Expert Committee including NTCPWC, IIT Madras has been prepared and approved by IWAI Board for implementation.
• Tender process for the remaining civil construction works of the project has been initiated.
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