National Waterway 1

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National Waterways (NW-1)
Details
Location India
Opened 27 October 1986; 37 years ago (1986-10-27)
Length 1620 km
North end Haldia (Sagar)
South end Allahabad
No. of terminals 18 Floating Terminal
2 Fixed RCC Jetty
Owner Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI)
Operator Central Inland Water Transport Corporation (CIWTC)

The National Waterway 1 or NW1 is located in India and runs from Haldia (Sagar) to Allahabad across the Ganges, Bhagirathi and Hooghly river systems. It is 1620 km long, making it the longest waterway in India,[1] NW1 passess through Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal.

It was declared as a waterway in October 1986. It is navigable by mechanical boat up to Patna.

The Route

Sl No Name of Terminal Land area Size of berth Type of terminal
1 Haldia 10319 m2 200 m Floating Terminal
2 Botanical Garden Jetty 996 m2 50 m Floating Terminal
3 BISN Jetty 11606.64 m2 100 m Floating Terminal
4 Shantipur 8000 m2 100 m Floating Terminal
5 Katwa Pontoon placed on water front 30 m Floating Terminal
6 Hazardwari Pontoon placed on water front 30 m Floating Terminal
7 Farakka 4800 m2 80 m Floating Terminal
8 G.R.Jetty - 2 14606 m2 216 m Fixed RCC Jetty
9 Rajmahal Pontoon placed on water front 35 m Floating Terminal
10 Sahebganj Pontoon placed on water front 35 m Floating Terminal
11 Bateshwarsthan Pontoon placed on water front 35 m Floating Terminal
12 Bhagalpur 1000 Sq. m 35 m Floating Terminal
13 Munger 3.4 Acre 35 m Floating Terminal
14 Semaria Pontoon placed on water front 35 m Floating Terminal
15 Barh - 27 m Floating Terminal
16 Buxar Pontoon placed on water front - Floating Terminal
17 Ghazipur Pontoon placed on water front 35 m Floating Terminal
18 Rajgat Pontoon placed on water front 35 m Floating Terminal
19 Allahabad 8.759 Hectare 35 m Floating Terminal
20 Patna 3.24 Acre 46.6 m Fixed RCC Jetty

The Controversy

The National Waterway 1 was landed in a controversy and protests after Nitin Gadkari, the Union Minister of Shipping in July, 2014 announced that the government will construct barrages every 100 kilometer on river Ganga and will undertake dredging activities in identified stretch to provide a width of 45 metres and a depth of three metres to enable transport of passengers and goods between Varanasi and Hooghly on river Ganga in the first stage of its development.[2][3] The initial proposal is based on a study by Danish Hydrological Institute, which prepared reports on two stretches between Allahabad and Varanasi and between Varanasi and Buxar. The plan was to provide a depth of three meters in the Ganga to make it fully navigable from Haldia to Allahabad for barges carrying 1,500-2,000 tonnes.[4] The announcement was made after World Bank agreed to fund the initial 50 million dollars including technical support without any public consultation.[5] The move was criticized by river activists and professors of Banaras Hindu University.[6]

Involvement of World Bank

A representation was sent by several experts on the environmental and social impact of reviving the National Waterway-1 to Government of India and World Bank in August, 2014. The representation was led by economist Dr. Bharat Jhunjhunwala along with a group of environmentalists and former bureaucrats. The representation was followed by meetings with World Bank.[7] The World Bank representatives were briefed about the ecological and social implications of the proposal. The adverse impact on river bank communities, the unmitigated displacement of people due to erosion at Farakka, a cost-benefit analysis for all stakeholders involved and whether taxation of the waterway will render it unviable. The World Bank clarified that they were unaware of the plan to construct 16 barrages. They said no funds had been disbursed.[8][9]

Opposition from Bihar

The Government of Bihar led by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar opposed the initiative to construct barrage on Ganga stating that construction of barrages will convert Ganga into big ponds. He stated that not a single drop of pure water from Ganga reaches Bihar due to similar barrages in upstream of the river.[10] Later, the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) has stated that there are at present no plans to construct any new barrage on the 1,620 km stretch of the National Waterway (NW)-1 on the Ganga.[11]

See also

References

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External links

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