The Centre is keen to develop inland water transportation in the country to enhance both passenger and cargo movement, Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister for Shipping, Road Transport and Highways, said.

Inland navigation, according to the Minister, has got great potential in Kerala and Lakshadweep, which also can create good amount of job opportunities. The Shipping Ministry has already taken the initiative to develop 101 waterways in the country and Kerala should leverage the potential.

The Minister was here to inaugurate the new Lakshadweep ship MV Corals on Friday. While in China 44 per cent of the transportation is through waterways, the figure in India was only 3.3 per cent.

The new all-weather ship with a capacity to carry 400 passengers was built at Sri Lanka at a cost of $29 million. A sister ship MV Lagoons, presently under construction at Colombo Dockyard, with the same specifications, is expected to be inducted by February.

Free flow of traffic

These two all-weather ships along with the existing fleet of Lakshadweep Administration will greatly ease the conveyance problems between mainland and Lakshadweep islands, especially during monsoon.

The dedicated wharf for Lakshadweep was constructed at Cochin Port Trust for berthing of all UTL Administration ships and vessels due to non-availability of sufficient berthing facilities and passenger terminal facility at Kochi. The 300-metre wharf was constructed by Cochin Port Trust at a cost of ₹37.52 crore from Plan funds provided by the Lakshadweep Administration.

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