Assam Revives River Trade: National Waterway-57 Becomes Operational After a Decade

India's Inland Waterways Get a Boost as 300 MT Cement Cargo Moves via River Kopili; Over 1,168 km of Water Routes Now Active in Assam

In a historic stride toward reviving Assam’s river-based trade and sustainable logistics, the government has inaugurated National Waterway‑57 (River Kopili) with its very first cargo trial run. Embarking from the Govardhan Bridge in Chandrapur, Kamrup, and navigating to Hatsingimari in South Samara, the vessel’s voyage marks the resumption of intra‑state cargo transport in Assam after more than a decade.

The Union Minister of Ports, Shipping & Waterways, Shri Sarbananda Sonowal, hailed this development as a watershed moment for inland waterway transport in Assam and the Northeast. The trial vessel, MV VV Giri, equipped with a self-loading mechanism, carried 300 metric tonnes of cement—supplied by M/s Star Cement—across a total voyage time of 12 to 14 hours, traversing about 300 kilometres via the Kopili (NW‑57) and Brahmaputra (NW‑2) rivers.

With this milestone, Assam now boasts over 1,168 km of operational national waterways.

“This operationalisation of NW‑57 on the Kopili River is more than a revival—it’s a strategic leap,” declared Minister Sonowal. “For too long, Assam’s riverine trade arteries lay dormant post-independence. Today, cargo movement has resumed on four national waterways—Brahmaputra (NW‑2), Barak (NW‑16), Dhansiri (NW‑31), and now Kopili (NW‑57). With 1,168 km of navigable waterways, Assam now has a sustainable, economical, and efficient alternative to road transport.”

The Minister emphasized that shifting freight movement from road to riverways will not only reduce emissions and ease road congestion but also unlock economies of scale for riverine communities across Assam. “This single cargo trial replaced approximately 23 truckloads of cement—it shows the immense potential of inland water transport.”

This trial run is the first cargo movement along the 46 km-long NW-57 since 2014, marking a restart of Assam’s intra-state river freight services. The move aligns with Maritime India Vision 2030 and the PM Gati Shakti initiative, both aimed at building sustainable, integrated, and efficient transport infrastructure throughout India.

Detailed work by the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) under the Ministry has made this possible. IWAI has been actively developing Assam’s river corridors—including Brahmaputra (NW‑2), Barak (NW‑16), Dhansiri (NW‑31), and now Kopili (NW‑57)—to unlock their navigational and economic potential.

In summing up the significance, Minister Sonowal remarked:

“The Kopili cargo movement is a symbol of a renewed, connected, and empowered Assam, integrated firmly into India’s national growth story. Riverways are not just transport channels—they are the arteries of regional prosperity.”

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