Govt launches ‘Jalvahak’ for regular cargo movement on inland waterways

Early this week, India announced the launch of scheduled cargo vessel services on the main inland waterways that would facilitate regular movement of goods along the arterial rivers.

Minister of ports and shipping, Sarbananda Sonowal, on Sunday announced the policy decision to start `Jalvahak’, a regular, fixed time, cargo vessel service that would incentivise long-haul cargo transport on inland waterways.

The ‘Jalvahak’ scheme offers to reimburse up to 35 per cent of the total operating cost of transporting goods on river Ganga (NW 1), river Brahmaputra (NW 2) and river Barak (NW 16). The incentive scheme is applicable to cargo owners transporting goods for more than 300 km using inland waterways. 

The scheme is available to goods transport using vessels hired from organisations other than IWAI or ICSL as well. 

Shipping companies, freight forwarders, trade bodies and associations that handle bulk and containerised cargo will also find the scheme attractive. 

Sonowal also flagged off three cargo ships - mv Aai, mv Homi Bhaba and mv Trishul along with two dumb barges, Ajay and Dikhu - from Haldia’s GR Jetty.

MV Trishul, with its two dumb barges, is carrying 1,500 tonnes of cement from GR Jetty in Kolkata to Pandu in Guwahati via Indo-Bangladesh Protocol Route (IBPR) while mv Aai is carrying 1,000 tonnes of gypsum to Patna and mv Homi Bhaba is loaded with 200 tonnes of coal for despatch to Varanasi.

The scheduled cargo service vessels will ply on the Kolkata - Patna - Varanasi - Patna - Kolkata stretch of NW 1 and on the Kolkata - Pandu stretch in Guwahati on NW 2 via Indo Bangladesh Protocol Route (IBPR).

To begin with, `Jalvahak’ will operate cargo services on NW 1, NW 2 and NW 16, the minister said.

The `Jalvahak’ scheme, with an investment of Rs95.4 crore, is expected to facilitate a modal shift of around 800 million tonnes kilometres of cargo to inland waterways, Sonowal said, adding that the national waterways currently move 4,700 tonnes of cargo annually.

He said the national waterways network has tremendous potential to realise a cheaper mode of transporting goods while also helping to decongest the railways and roadways.

Water transport is more economical and efficient and also offers ecological benefits as it is less polluting 

Jalvahak scheme is economical for long haul cargo on NW1, NW2 and NW16, and offers a value proposition for cargo movement. The regular services also ensures timely despatch and delivery of cargo, Sonowal pointed out.

To be operated by ICSL, the transit time for cargo service on the NW 1 stretch between Kolkata and Varanasi via Patna is fixed at 7 days for Kolkata to Patna stretch, 5 days for Patna to Varanasi and 14 days for Kolkata to Varanasi stretch. 

The cargo transit time on NW2 via IBPR - the Kolkata to Pandu stretch - is fixed at 18 days and Pandu to Kolkata 15 days. 

Government has incentivised vessel operators to ensure safe and timely movement of goods in order to instil confidence among users.

The cargo promotion scheme is being implemented jointly by the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), the nodal agency of waterways development in the country and the Inland and Coastal Shipping Limited (ICSL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Shipping Corporation of India Limited (SCIL). 

The incentive scheme is initially valid for 3 years.