Guwahati: Connectivity to the northeast to get a major boost with the Centre investing over Rs. 1 lakh crore in the North East.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, addressing the NADI (Natural Allies in Development and Interdependence) Conclave on May 29 in Guwahati, informed that the Centre is implementing several connectivity projects in the region, including rail, road, air, and waterways.

The infrastructure projects include 20 in the railways that totals to about 2,011 kms for Rs. 74,000 crores; 4000 kms of roads at an expense of Rs. 58,000 crores; 15 air connectivity projects worth Rs. 2200 crores. Additionally, the number of Indo-Bangladesh Protocol Routes has been increased to ten from the existing eight. The Protocol Routes are reviewed every five years. There was a review in May 2022, the minister said.

Furthermore, work is also being carried out to develop the national waterways, including NW-1 on the Ganga, NW-2 on the Brahmaputra, and NW-16 on the Barak river. Sitharaman said that the entire stretch from Sadiya to Dhubri in Assam is being developed for improved connectivity.

She added that the Eastern Waterways Connectivity Transport Grid, having 5,000 km of navigable waterways when completed, will offer seamless connectivity from the North East region to the entire sub-continent.

In Guwahati, a multimodal hub is underway on the Brahmaputra that will include a ship repairing port at Pandu, four tourist jetties, and 11 floating terminals.

Elaborating on international connectivity through waterways, the Union Minister highlighted that India and Bangladesh have 50 riverine systems, which can be leveraged for all types of transportation purposes as the cost of travel through water is the least compared to air, road, and rail networks.

Several projects are also being developed in the region to enhance power transmission and distribution, mobile network (4G), and broadband connectivity.

"The Indian government together with the World Bank is offering big connectivity solutions by removing bottlenecks," Sitharaman said