- Union government has launched the Jalvahak Scheme to promote cargo transport via inland waterways, enhancing sustainability and reducing logistics costs.
- The scheme offers a 35% reimbursement to cargo owners for transporting goods over 300 km. It’s expected to shift 800 million tonne-kilometers by 2027 with an investment of Rs 95.4 crore.
- This scheme marks the beginning of a fixed scheduled service of cargo vessels from Haldia in National Waterways 1 (Ganga) and National Waterways 2 (Brahmaputra).
- The scheme is ideal for major shipping companies, freight forwarders, trade bodies and associations that handle bulk and containerized cargo. Through this scheme, they optimize their supply chain network.
What are Inland waterways?
Rivers, lakes, canals, backwaters, and reservoirs primarily constitute the source for inland waterways. A stretch of water, not part of the sea, over which craft of a carrying capacity not less than 50 tonnes can navigate when normally loaded is called a navigable inland waterway.
Inland Waterways in India
Number and Extent: (National Inland Waterways in India- A Strategic Status Report, 2017)
- As per the National Waterways Act, 2016, 111 have been declared as National Waterways (NW)
- These waterways pass through 24 states and two union territories, with an approximate total length of 20274 km
- These proposed waterways will pass through nearly 138 river systems, creeks, estuaries and related canal systems of India.
International Comparison
- Inland water transport in India has only 0.5% modal share; China 8.7%; USA 8.3% and Europe 7% (Source: Jal Marg Vikas Project – Inland Waterways Authority 0f India)
- Inland water transport (IWT) accounts for less than 1% of its freight traffic, compared with 35% in Bangladesh and 20% in Germany.
Advantages of Inland Waterways
- Cost savings:
- Fuel and Energy Efficient: It is fuel-efficient compared to the other modes of transport, rail and road. For example, the Integrated National Waterways Transportation Grid Study states that one liter of fuel will move 24 tons through one kilometer on road, 85 on rail, and 105 km on inland water transport. Further, 1 HP can 150 kg on road, 500 kg on rail and 4000 kg on water.
- The cost of developing waterways is much lower than rail & road.
- Reduces transportation and transition losses
- Environment Friendly:
- Least fuel consumption per tonne‐km
- Carbon dioxide emission is 50% of trucks
- Negligible land requirement as compared to rail and road transport
- Supplementary Mode:
- Reduces pressure on road and rail
- Reduces congestion and accidents on road
- Optimal Modal Mix: It will provide optimal modal mix by converging river transport with other modes
- Better connectivity: It helps create seamless interconnectivity connecting hinterlands along navigable river coasts and coastal routes. Further, riverine routes are likely to play a crucial role in connecting the north-eastern states to the mainland
- Inland Waterways hold huge potential for domestic cargo transport, cruise, tourism, and passenger traffic.
- The development of inland waterways will help in the generation of job opportunities
Disadvantages of Inland waterways
- Inland waterways have low transport speeds thus not suitable where time is an important factor
- It has a limited area of operation, depending on the infrastructural premises and depth of the waterways
- There are only very few cases in which Inland water transport (IWT) can offer door-to-door transport of cargo
- Operational disruptions due to weather are a major disadvantage
- Environmental Impact:
- Dredging operations will damage river beds, and can lead to changes in habitats for various aquatic flora and fauna.
- Dredging may also impact aquifers along the river, damaging the ability of water to percolate underground.
- In estuaries and creeks of rivers, the removal of river bed material during capital dredging can result in the ingress of excess saline water into the creek or rivers. This is one of the reasons why the state of Kerala opposed many of its proposed waterways
- Construction of jetties and river ports will necessitate the removal of trees/ mangrove forests in the area. For example, At Dharamtar port in NW10, for the construction of a jetty, the mangrove forest belt on the bank has been removed
- Other environmental concerns include pollution due to oil and diesel from vessels, leakage and spilling of cargo
- Note: Dredging is an excavation or digging activity carried out underwater that removes rock, mud, silt, sediments, etc. from the bottom of the river bed or other water bodies. Dredging is used to dig and create a channel in the river bed of the required depth.
- Social impact:
- Ecological impacts can have implications for the livelihoods of people dependent on the rivers and creeks. For example: the impact on the fishing community, people dependent on riverbed cultivation
- Displacement is another major concern as land is needed for a number of facilities like ports, jetties, and other infrastructure.
