Do not give up on national waterway

Moving goods by rail costs less than by road, and using waterways is even cheaper than rail. However, for this to work, the waterways need to be deep enough, have docking terminals for boats, and have warehouses at key points to store goods. Fortunately, Kerala is one of the most water-rich states in India, with its sea, backwaters, and canals. With this in mind, the National Inland Waterways Authority started a national waterway project in Kerala three decades ago. The Kollam–Kottappuram stretch was taken over in 1993, and the Kottappuram–Kallayi (Kozhikode) stretch in 2016.

While the central government is responsible for developing inland waterways into national waterways, it is the state government’s duty to ensure there is enough cargo movement to make them profitable. Recently, Kerala Kaumudi reported that the Union Ministry of Inland Water Transport is backing out of declaring these two stretches as national waterways because such cargo movement could not be guaranteed. This decision comes after building 11 terminals and warehouses at major locations, spending over Rs 300 crore. If private companies that provide barges for moving goods- including container cargo- are to be brought into the project, the state needs to set up a special company and take further steps under it. So far, no such move has been made.

The state government had also planned to use the national waterway as a boost for tourism. With that in mind, it had asked the Centre to declare the Kovalam–Kollam and Kozhikode–Bekal stretches as national waterways. Plans included creating a special circuit connecting tourist spots along the waterway, building small townships on its banks, and offering convenient travel packages for visitors. However, tourism alone cannot recover the huge investment needed for developing a national waterway; cargo movement is essential. Considering that heavy goods lorries are one of the main causes of congestion on national highways, the need for a national waterway in Kerala becomes clear.

Kerala Waterways and Infrastructure Ltd (KWIL), a state-owned company, is responsible for developing the 620 km West Coast Canal from Vizhinjam to Bekal for tourism, travel, and cargo transport. But if the Centre completely withdraws from Kerala’s national waterway project, the state will have to spend around Rs 3,000 crore from its own funds to develop just the West Coast Canal. Now, Kerala’s best option is to approach the Centre once again, stressing how important the national waterway is, explaining the problems caused by truck traffic on highways, and showing readiness to ensure barge services for cargo transport.