₹526-crore waterway projects on NW-2: Pandu Port corridor dedicated, Bogibeel skill centre and two cruise terminals begun
Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated the Pandu Port–NH-27 elevated corridor and began three more Inland Waterways Authority of India projects on the Brahmaputra (NW-2), worth ₹526 crore in all, on 13 March 2026.
Summary
The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) saw four projects worth ₹526 crore on National Waterway-2 (the Brahmaputra) launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Assam on 13 March 2026. Modi dedicated a ₹180-crore elevated road corridor linking Pandu Port in Guwahati to NH-27, which bypasses city congestion. Bhoomi pujan was performed for a ₹188-crore Regional Centre of Excellence at Bogibeel, Dibrugarh — described as the first maritime skill hub of its kind in the North East, to train over 5,000 students a year — and for a cruise terminal at Neamati, while the foundation stone was laid for a cruise terminal at Biswanath Ghat; the two terminals together cost ₹158 crore. According to IWAI, the 891-km stretch of the Brahmaputra between the Bangladesh border and Sadiya was declared NW-2 on 1 September 1988, and IWAI develops it under the IWAI Act, 1985.
Key facts
- Date
- 13 March 2026
- Total
- ₹526 crore, four projects
- Dedicated
- Pandu Port–NH-27 elevated corridor, ₹180 crore
- Bhoomi pujan
- Regional Centre of Excellence, Bogibeel (Dibrugarh), ₹188 crore; 5,000+ trainees a year
- Cruise terminals
- Biswanath Ghat (foundation stone) and Neamati (bhoomi pujan), ₹158 crore together
- NW-2
- Brahmaputra, 891 km, Bangladesh border–Sadiya; declared 1 September 1988
- Law
- IWAI Act, 1985
Practice MCQs 3 questions
Where is the ₹188-crore Regional Centre of Excellence of IWAI, whose bhoomi pujan was held on 13 March 2026, located?
Show answer
Correct answer: B — Bogibeel, Dibrugarh
The Regional Centre of Excellence is at Bogibeel in Dibrugarh and will train over 5,000 students a year in vessel operations and inland navigation.
The elevated road corridor dedicated on 13 March 2026 connects Pandu Port in Guwahati with which highway?
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Correct answer: C — NH-27
The ₹180-crore corridor links the Pandu Port complex to NH-27, closing a last-mile gap between river and road.
Consider the following statements about National Waterway-2: 1. It is the 891-km stretch of the Brahmaputra between the Bangladesh border and Sadiya. 2. It was first declared a national waterway by the National Waterways Act, 2016. Which of the above is/are correct?
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Correct answer: A — 1 only
Statement 1 is correct. Statement 2 is wrong: IWAI records that NW-2 was declared on 1 September 1988, by the National Waterway (Sadiya–Dhubri Stretch of the Brahmaputra River) Act, 1988.