The Centre has turned down a proposal from the Kerala government to extend the national waterway 3 (NW3) from Kollam to Kovalam and Kozhikode to Bekal, Minister of State for Shipping Mansukh Mandaviya told Parliament on Monday.
“It has been decided to first undertake development in the existing stretch of NW3 and not to extend it further,” Mandaviya told Rajya Sabha in a written reply.
NW3 was declared in 1993 and stretches from Kollam to Kottapuram of West Coast Canal and Champakara and Udyogamandal Canals. The 205-km stretch is fully operational with 24-hour navigational facilities and eight permanent intermodal terminals with storage facilities and mechanised equipment for loading/ unloading of cargo.
NW3 was further extended by 165 km in the north up to Kozhikode from Kottapuram along with three new national waterways connected to NW3 under the National Waterways Act, 2016. The new waterways include NW8 between Alappuzha-Changanassery canal (29 km), NW9 linking Alappuzha-Kottayam – Athirampuzha canal (40 km) and NW59 between Kottayam-Vaikom canal (19 km).
The Kerala government has submitted a proposal for further extension of NW3, from Kollam to Kovalam (78 km) in the south and from Kozhikode to Bekal (205 km) in the north.
Further, for facilitating development of inland waterways in Kerala, the State government has suggested the formation of a new public limited company — Kerala Waterways and Infrastructures Ltd (KWIL) — with Government of India/Inland Waterways Authority of India’s share of equity not exceeding 49 per cent and the remaining stake to be held by the Government of Kerala (26 per cent) and Cochin International Airport Limited (25 per cent).