Behind the water transport plans for Alappuzha and Kollam: Kerala has three National Waterways, NW-3, NW-8 and NW-9

Background

Feasibility studies on urban water transport at Alappuzha and Kollam are being run by the Inland Waterways Authority of India through Kochi Water Metro Ltd, and they sit on a network the Centre has set out. In a written reply in the Lok Sabha, Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said Kerala has three declared National Waterways, numbered NW-3, NW-8 and NW-9. Nine terminal-cum-godown facilities for cargo stand at Kottapuram, Aluva, Maradu, Vaikom, Thaneermukam, Alappuzha, Thrikunnapuzha, Kayamkulam and Kollam. Two roll-on roll-off terminals work at Bolgatty and Willington Island, both on NW-3, served by two vessels built by Cochin Shipyard Limited and run by the Kerala Shipping and Inland Navigation Corporation. For safe navigation there are 312 buoys on NW-3, 15 on NW-8 and 25 on NW-9. Four HDPE floating jetties are planned at Vaikom, Thaneermukam, Alappuzha and Kayamkulam for river cruise tourism. Viability Gap Funding of Rs 817.80 crore from the Union Government for the Vizhinjam project has been spent in full.