The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) held
its first meeting in Shillong, Meghalaya last week with stakeholders in the
mining sector to explore the idea of transporting cargo, including coal,
through the National Waterways at a cheaper rate.
The focus was also on integrating the North-East through the Indo-Bangladesh Protocol (IBP) route.
It was said that goods to and from Meghalaya can be handled by terminal operators at Pandu and Dhubri in Assam. These terminals provide access to the IBP route as well as mainland India beyond, said a report.