Centre Announces Incentives for Boosting Inland Waterway Transport

05 Dec 2024 CW Team

The Shipping Ministry of India has announced a Rs 1 billion scheme aimed at boosting inland waterways transport (IWT). The initiative includes incentives for launching Scheduled Services for Cargo Movement on National Waterways (NW) 1, 2, and 16.

In a note, the Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways stated that the IWT sector is still in its early stages and needs support to encourage a shift in cargo transport modes, alongside the development of necessary physical infrastructure.

The government's consideration of financial assistance for goods movement via inland waterways, as part of a strategy to leverage the country’s river, canal, and backwater networks for cargo transport.

Although waterway transport is inherently less expensive compared to other modes, the multimodal logistics involved often increase the overall cost.

To address this, the scheme offers a 35 per cent incentive to promote the use of inland waterways for cargo transport. Official estimates project that the initiative could redirect 800 million tonne-kilometres of cargo to IWT, supplementing the existing 4700 million tonne-kilometres already transported via waterways. The scheme will remain in effect for three years, with potential for scaling up or modification based on its outcomes.

The ministry also mentioned that the scheme is currently limited to NW-1, NW-2, and NW-16, including routes under the Indo-Bangladesh protocol, given the high potential for traffic growth in these areas. However, the scope of the scheme may be expanded to other waterways based on its success.

Infrastructure Transport

01 Jun 2026

MMRDA advances 250 m on Orange Gate–Marine Drive tunnel

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has completed 250 m of underground tunnelling for the Orange Gate–Marine Drive Urban Road Tunnel using India’s largest slurry shield tunnel boring machine (TBM) deployed for an urban road project.The project involves twin tunnels extending over 7 km beneath critical transport corridors, including Central Railway, Western Railway and Metro Line 3. The work requires high-precision engineering to navigate densely developed urban infrastructure.Once completed, the tunnel is expected to reduce travel time between Orange Gate and Marin..

Hindustan Zinc Pays Rs 188.46 Billion in FY26

Hindustan Zinc contributed Rs 188.46 billion to the public exchequer in FY 2025-26, according to its 9th Tax Transparency Report. The contribution, equivalent to 46 per cent of the company’s revenue, included direct and indirect taxes, government royalties, dividends to the Government of India, withholding taxes and other statutory levies.The company’s five-year cumulative contribution to the exchequer stood at Rs 915.72 billion. In FY26, Hindustan Zinc reported revenue of Rs 408.44 billion, EBITDA of Rs 221.62 billion and profit after tax of Rs 138.32 billion. It also achieved its highest..

World of Concrete India 2026 Opens in Mumbai

Informa Markets in India will host the 12th edition of World of Concrete India 2026 from 3–5 June 2026 at the Bombay Exhibition Centre, Mumbai. The specialised B2B exhibition will bring together manufacturers, suppliers, contractors, developers, architects, consultants, infrastructure companies, project leaders and government stakeholders.The event is expected to feature over 350 brands and more than 18,000 trade professionals. It will cover concrete and cement, dry mortar, precast technologies, formwork, construction chemicals, industrial and commercial flooring, scaffolding, safety solutio..