Dibrugarh: Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Monday launched multiple projects for the development of the Bogibeel region near Dibrugarh in Assam.
Ports, Shipping & Waterways minister Sonowal laid the foundation stone for the construction of two floating jetties at Bogibeel and Guijan.
Ready for a challenge? Click here to take our quiz and show off your knowledge!
The two floating jetties at Bogibeel in Dibrugarh district and Guijan in Tinsukia district will be constructed as state-of-art terminals using the most advanced & updated technology.
Both the jetties are being constructed by IWAI over the National Waterways – 2 (NW-2), popularly known as River Brahmaputra.
The work has been awarded to Coastal Consolidated Structures Pvt. Ltd on an EPC contract mode (engineering, procurement, construction). The two jetties are estimated to be built at a cost of Rs 8.25 crores and are scheduled to be completed by February, 2023.
Ready for a challenge? Click here to take our quiz and show off your knowledge!
Sonowal also inaugurated the Bogibeel Riverfront Passenger Jetty which has been developed by the Northeast Frontier Railways (NFR) as part of Riverfront Development near the Bogibeel Bridge.
Further to this development, plans are afoot to construct an Open platform, a restaurant, 8 bio-toilets and 6 awnings as part of the Riverfront site.
The entire structure has been constructed over rail columns with an angle frame covered by WPC board floorings.
The estimated cost of the project was Rs 2.5 crores. A total of 3560 square meters are being developed under this project. Following a meeting at the Bogibeel at the behest of Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, the Riverfront development work has been going on with a vision to make this area a tourist hub in this region.
Speaking at the event, Union Minister Sonowal said, “We must tap this opportunity and build an economic advantage which will power the whole of Northeast India as the New Engine of growth for India. Our government is also identifying avenues to promote inland navigation, river cruise tourism, and construction of suitable terminals across the Brahmaputra.”
The Union Minister also added that India’s longest river cruise service will begin in early next year between Varanasi and Bogibeel, traversing a distance of more than 4,000 kms via Ganga, IBPR and Brahmaputra.
This is going to usher a novel opportunity for the people of Assam to use inland waterways to promote their trade & livelihood in tourism and cargo transportation, he said.
Further to the floating jetties, a permanent cargo terminal at Bogibeel is also being planned for the conducive transport of cargo from neighboring industries like Brahmaputra Cracker & Polymer Limited, Brahmaputra Valley Fertiliser Corp, etc.
A Detailed Project Report (DPR) is being done in this regard. The proposed tourist terminal in the vicinity of the Guijan Ghat is located on the banks of river Lohit.
The Project Influence Area (PIA) for Bogibeel terminal is the upper part of Assam which forms the Dibrugarh and encompasses districts of Golaghat, Jorhat, Sibsagar, Dibrugarh, Tinsukia and parts of Nagaland.
The PIA is marked by the presence of the paper industry, coal deposits, food processing units, tea estates, fertilizer production units, and refineries.
Similarly, the huge potential of inland navigation and river cruise tourism on Lohit & Brahmaputra will be explored, development jetties along the way to be considered & the opportunity for an ecologically sensitive economic development of the region is aimed to be tapped.