The Orissa government will urge the Planning Commission for including the Rs 3,800-crore mega inland water transport project along the east coast canal and Brahmani-Kharsua river system under the 12th Five Year Plan (2012-17).
“The project has already been declared a national waterway and it is unfortunate that the state did not receive any funding from the Centre under the 11th Plan. The state Chief Secretary will now write to the Planning Commission for approving the project under the 12th Plan,” a top official source told Business Standard.
The project was declared National Waterway 5 (NW-5) by the Government of India on November 25, 2008. The NW-5 includes east coast canal integrated with Brahmani and Mahanadi delta river system.
The waterway includes the Talcher-Dhamara stretch of Brahmani river, Geonkhali-Charbatia stretch of East Coast Canal, Charbatia-Dhamara stretch of Matai river and Mangalgadi-Paradip stretch of Mahanadi delta rivers spanning 588 km. According to detailed project report prepared by Water & Power Consultancy Services (India) Ltd- WAPCOS, river portion of the waterway is 371 km with the canal portion being 217 km.
The project was scheduled to be completed in eight years. Coal from Talcher to Dhamara and Paradip ports is the most important potential cargo for this waterway. It is estimated in the DPR that about 11 million tonnes of cargo can be transported per year after the development of this waterway which can go up to 23 million tonnes per annum in the next 1 years.
The proposed waterway has been categorized into three stretches - Talcher to Mangalgadi (237 km), Dhamara to Paradip (95 km) and Dhamara to Geonkhali (256 km). The Brahmani, Kharsua and Mahanadi river system mainly constitutes the river portion to be developed for the proposed waterway.
The waterway passes through major towns like Talcher, Paradip and Dhamara in the river section and Bhadrak, Balasore, Jaleswar and Haldia in the canal section.
Besides key minerals like coal and iron ore, agricultural products like paddy, rice, jute coconut and fish products as well as finished goods and manufactured like fertilizers, cement, sugar, salt, asbestos sheets and textiles are likely to use this waterway.
