New Delhi : Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Shri Sarbananda Sonowal has said that from waterways, to railways, to air transport, to highways, the country is progressing in every field and in the next 25 years India will be a self-reliant country as envisioned by the Prime Minister. Speaking at the inauguration of seven community jetties and foundation stone of 8 more jetties in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh he said the under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, work is being done for development from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, Ladakh to Arunachal Pradesh under the policy of ‘Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat’.
Shri Sonowal said India is implementing policies that would enable creation of world-class infrastructure. He said Prime Minister emphasis on developing national waterways has unleashed strong economic multipliers encompassing logistics, trade, city infrastructure, water supplies and tourism is an exemplification of this vision. Shri Sonowal said the Pradhan Mantri Gati Shakti Summit 2022 will pave the way forward for enhanced and coordinated efforts towards comprehensive development of waterways led transport & logistics sector in the country. He added that active waterways, when used for regular logistics and passenger travel, necessarily creates landing and loading/unloading points on the banks of the rivers. The Minister said this makes large areas of the hinterland accessible to the routes of trade and commerce, making goods from these areas part of the national and global supply chain network, opening up new markets for everyone—from farmers to craftspeople to factories.
Shri Sonowal said that the focus on “port-led development” is central to this vision to create seamless multi-modal connectivity for movement of people and cargo, with focus on removing barriers to last mile connectivity, emblematic of the Prime Minister’s Atmanirbhar and Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat’ vision.
On this occasion, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Shri Yogi Adityanath said that not only will Uttar Pradesh benefit from the help of PM Gati Shakti Yojana, but the entire country will develop.
He said many schemes have been implemented under the able leadership of Prime Minister, which is realizing the dream of Ek Bharat Shreshtha.He thanked the Prime Minister that such a beautiful gift has been given to Varanasi. This will help in easing the traffic from Varanasi to other places in the country. It will also help exports of agricultural and other products from Uttar Pradesh, which is a landlocked state, to efficiently reach sea ports through the inland waterways, Shri Adityanath added.
Shri Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurated seven community jetties in the presence of Shri Yogi Adityanath, Chief Minister, Uttar Pradesh and other dignitaries and also laid the foundation stone of eight more jetties on the river Ganga in Uttar Pradesh.
A host of dignitaries including Shri Daya Shankar Singh, Minister of State, Independent Charge, Transport, Govt. of Uttar Pradesh, Shri Shantanu Thakur, Minister of State, Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways, Shri Shripad Naik, Minister of State, Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways, Shri Mahendra Nath Pandey, Minister for Heavy Industry, top leadership team from IWAI and representatives from the state government were present at the event.
The Spiritual City of India is all set to receive the most advanced Hydrogen Fuel Cell Catamaran Vessels, announced Shri Sonowal in the presence of leading dignitaries. The city will get one Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vessel and four Electric Hybrid Vessels for Varanasi. An MoU was signed between the Inland Waterways Authority of India and Cochin Shipyard Limited during the event.
Under the Jal Marg Vikas Project -II (JMVP-II), also known as Arth Ganga, IWAI is developing/upgrading 62 small community jetties along the river Ganga. These include 15 in Uttar Pradesh, 21 in Bihar, 3 in Jharkhand and 23 in West Bengal.
In UP, jetties are being developed on a 250 km stretch between Varanasi and Ballia. The jetties equipped with all passenger and administrative amenities will enable the movement of freight and passengers across the river resulting in time and cost savings.
Operational jetties can boost small-scale industries, enhance the region’s cultural heritage, and generate employment opportunities that benefit communities. The focus on the development of inland waterways will help standardise development and operation, leading to better facilities and improvement in livelihood for local communities.
With its inherent advantage of being low-cost and environment-friendly, inland waterways transportation will now pave the way for reducing the uses of fossil fuel by introducing ZERO EMISSION HYDROGEN FUEL CELL PASSENGER CATAMARAN VESSEL IN KASHI (VARANASI).
The Government through IWAI, has assigned this project to Cochin Shipyard Ltd, Kochi, which has recently delivered the country’s first indigenous Air Craft Carrier.
According to the MoU between IWAI and CSL, the design and development of the Zero Emission 100 pax Hydrogen Fuel Cell Passenger Catamaran Vessel will be undertaken by CSL in collaboration with M/s KPIT, Pune. The catamaran vessel will be deployed at Varanasi after test and trial at Kochi. Based on the success of this Project, the technology can be adopted for greening of, cargo vessels, small country crafts etc. enabling significant reduction in pollution levels in the National Waterways.
CSL will also build 8 Hybrid electric Catamaran vessels as per the MoU. The project was approved by the central government at a cost of Rs.130 crores. The vessels with a capacity of 50 pax will be deployed in Varanasi, Ayodhya, Mathura-Vrindavan and Guwahati.
List of jetties launched in UP:
| Location of jetty | District |
| 1. Assighat/ St. RavidasGhat | Varanasi |
| 2. Kaithy | Varanasi |
| 3. Ramnagar | Varanasi |
| 4. Collector Ghat | Ghazipur |
| 5. Shivpur | Ballia |
| 6. Ujjiyarghat | Ballia |
| 7. Baluaghat | Chandauli |
List of jetties in UP for which Bhoomipujan conducted:
| Location of jetty | District |
| 1. Rajghat | Varanasi |
| 2. Chochakpur | Ghazipur |
| 3. Dungurpur | Ghazipur |
| 4. Saidpur | Ghazipur |
| 5. Zamania | Ghazipur |
| 6. Steamerghat | Ghazipur |
| 7. Kanspur | Ballia |
| 8. Majhoua | Ballia |
Salient Features of Hydrogen Fuel Cell Catamaran:
- Zero Emission Water Taxi
- CO2 emission reduction – 250 MT annually/vessel
- Designed for short-distance commute in riverine waters.
- Powered by hydrogen Fuel Cell and LiFePO4 Batteries
- Optimized hull form
- Designed to Indian Register of Shipping (IRS) standards
- Enhanced passenger comfort and ergonomics
- Air-conditioned seating space for 100 Passengers
- Large windows for excellent panoramic view
Salient Features of Electric Hybrid Vessel
- Designed for short-distance commute in riverine waters.
- Powered by LTO Batteries
- Optimized hull form
- Fast charging capability
- Designed to Indian Register of Shipping (IRS) standards
- Enhanced passenger comfort and ergonomics
- Air-conditioned seating space for 50 Passengers
- Large windows for excellent panoramic view
- On-board accommodation for Crew
- Toilet and Washroom for passengers
- Diesel OBM for emergency.
- CO2 emission reduction – 200 MT annually/vessel
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