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National Waterway-1 to cost Rs 735 cr less
The estimated cost has been revised downwards to Rs4,633.81 cr from the original cost of Rs 5,369.18 cr
New Delhi: Infrastructure projects are often characterized with cost and time overruns. In the case of the Jal Marg Vikas Project (JMVP), however, the estimated cost has been revised downwards to Rs 4,633.81 crore from the original cost of Rs 5,369.18 crore, according to official sources.
Which means that the JMVP, also called National Waterway-1, will cost Rs 735.37 crore less.
The JMVP, executed by the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), is an inland waterway project on the Ganga between Prayagraj and Haldia. It is being implemented with the technical assistance and investment worth Rs387.10 crore from the World Bank. The original cost was cleared by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on January 3, 2018. A milestone of the project, Multi Modal Terminal Varanasi, was achieved at a cost of Rs 182.33 crore in July 2019. This included a delay of eight months. The entire project, however, is expected to complete on schedule, that is, in March 2023.
The JMVP will provide an alternative, cost-effective, safe, and environment-friendly mode of transport, officials said. Once completed, this would attract industries and logistic players in and around the project corridor, enabling socio-economic growth in the region covering the States of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal.
The JMVP also got a fillip in March when the National Green Tribunal refused to deliberate on the objections to it. The NGT said that the Allahabad High Court had already given its verdict over the issue.
"We find that as far as the present project is concerned, the Allahabad High Court order dated 28 April, 2016, clinches the matter. In the face of the said order, there is no scope for this tribunal to consider the matter as far as this project is concerned," the NGT bench said.
But the tribunal pointed out that it would look into any alleged violation of environmental norms in the execution of the project. The IWAI signed a project agreement with the World Bank on February 2, 2018.
The development and operations of the National Waterway-1 project will lead to direct employment generation to the tune of 46,000 and indirect employment of 84,000 in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, and West Bengal, a government press release on February 2, 2018, said.
"The project includes development of fairway, Multi-Modal Terminals at Varanasi, Haldia and Sahibganj, strengthening the river navigation system, conservancy works, modern River Information System (RIS), Digital Global Positioning System (DGPS), night navigation facilities, modern methods of channel marking, construction of a new state-of-the-art navigational lock at Farakka, etc.," it said. The JMVP will result in an environment-friendly, fuel-efficient and cost-effective alternative mode of transportation, especially for bulk goods, hazardous goods and over-dimensional cargo, it said.
