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Narendra Modi to create special post in shipping ministry for Sagarmala project

Narendra Modi government is creating a new post in the shipping ministry to take charge of its ambitious Sagarmala project.

By , ET Bureau | Updated:
Narendra Modi government is creating a new post in the shipping ministry to take charge of its ambitious Sagarmala project. The ministry would get a joint secretary – Sagarmala along with a team of another ten officials to look after the implementation of NDA’s pet project originally mooted by former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

The process of selecting the candidates will start soon. The ministry will be seeking the permission of the expenditure department for the additional posts it wishes to create as well.

The shipping ministry is also awaiting the report by consulting company McKinsey to start the work on Sagarmala project. The cabinet had cleared the institutional framework for the Sagarmala project to start port led development in the country last month. The initial requirement for the implementation of projects in the initial phase of Sagarmala Project in 2015-16 is around Rs. 692 crores.

The in-principle nod to Sagarmala project concept and institutional framework is aimed at port-led development through policy and institutional intervention, modernizing port infrastructure and building efficient evacuation system
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Nitin Gadkari's 5 big-ticket projects to modernise India's inland waterways
1/6
Text: Binoy Prabhakar, ET Bureau and Ministry of Shipping, IWAI

Shipping minister Nitin Gadkari is steering the Modi government’s most ambitious infrastructure push yet as he prepares to modernise India’s old and long ignored inland waterways.

Here are some of Gadkari’s big-ticket maritime projects
Text: Binoy Prabhakar, ET Bureau and Ministry of Shipping, IWAI

Shipping minister Nitin Gadkari is steering the Modi government’s most ambitious infrastructure push yet as he prepares ..
Read More
India has numerous rivers, canals, creeks, lakes that can be developed as inland waterways, but only five waterways have been declared as national waterways (NWs)

Due to the urgent need for an alternative mode of transport — to supplement the choked road and rail networks — the long waiting period for developing NWs must be curtailed.

The answer is declare all the identified waterways as NWs through a single legislation instead of going through the motion of enacting a separate legislation for each.

Examples:ASSAM: Barank, Subansiri, Lohit, Gangadhar, Aai, Beki, Puthimari, Kapi & Dehing

BIHAR:Ganbdak, Koshi & Sone

GOA: Mandovi, Zuari, Mapusa, Chapora & Cumberjua Canal

DELHI:Yamuna
India has numerous rivers, canals, creeks, lakes that can be developed as inland waterways, but only five waterways have been declared as national waterways (NWs)

Due to the urgent need for a..
Read More
All the five declared NWs cannot be joined to create a national waterway grid, but at least three can form a grid in the East.

Highlights of the grid:

National Waterways: 5

Total Length (km): 4,382 + 1,665 km of water network in Bangladesh

Total No. of Terminals: 70

No. of States Covered: 15

Total Traffic (2011-12): 287 (Million Tonnes)(All modes)

Terminals Identified for Development Based on Traffic Potential: 31
All the five declared NWs cannot be joined to create a national waterway grid, but at least three can form a grid in the East.

Highlights of the grid:

National Waterways: 5<..
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Estimated cost of the project: Rs 4200 crore

World Bank-assisted project to develop for navigation the Haldia–Allahabad stretch on National Waterways-1

NW-1 passes through four states and potentially serves the cities of Haldia, Howrah, Kolkata, Bhagalpur, Patna, Ghazipur, Varanasi and Allahabad and several industries located along the Ganga basin

Rail and road corridors of this region are already saturated

So the development of NW-1 would offer an alternative mode of transport Huge quantities of bulk cargo can be transported and boost economic development of the region.
Estimated cost of the project: Rs 4200 crore

World Bank-assisted project to develop for navigation the Haldia–Allahabad stretch on National Waterways-1

NW-1 passes through fou..
Read More
Key objectives:

To make it a thriving river

Cleaning the river

Beautify and create an environmental and social friendly river front

Make the river usable for navigation, water transport etc.
Key objectives:

To make it a thriving river

Cleaning the river

Beautify and create an environmental and social friendly river front

Make the river usable for na..
Read More
Easier Immigration Procedures : Visa on Arrival shortly to be given to 114 countries at airports must be extended to seaports

: Cruise passengers after local sight-seeing trips have to return to their ships before sailing. They cannot fly out of the country and have to move in a group

Easier Customs Procedures: The insistence on the so-called store list to be declared at the first Indian port will be dispensed with as this list runs into 2,000-3,000 pages

A store list also has to have foreign currency holdings of vessels; this has to be declared at all Indian ports. Tallying is trouble.

Cabotage Waiver: Currently foreign vessels calling on Mumbai cannot take Indian passengers who may want to go up to Goa or Kochi.

Allowing Indian passengers this facility means they needn’t fly abroad to experience cruise tourism

Development of Lakshadweep as a cruise destination: The Lakshadweep Islands can be developed like the Maldives The Maldives makes more than $1 billion from cruise tourism annually

Even Indians require permits to enter Lakshadweep and tourist infrastructure is grossly inadequate
Easier Immigration Procedures : Visa on Arrival shortly to be given to 114 countries at airports must be extended to seaports

: Cruise passengers aft..
Read More
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