National waterway for northeast

The 121-km stretch of Lakhipur-Bhanga of the Barak river will soon become a national waterway, the sixth in the country.

Approving the proposal, the Union Cabinet on Thursday decided to enact a law for the purpose and cleared Rs. 123 crore for providing infrastructure on this stretch.

The Inland Waterways Authority of India will execute the project in two phases. The first will be completed by 2016-17 and the second by 2018-19, integrating the waterways in the northeast and helping cargo transport through Assam, Nagaland, Mizoram, Manipur, Tripura and Arunachal Pradesh.