An official said on Sunday that the Centre has approved around Rs 24 crore for dredging of the Gomati, a transboundary river between India and Bangladesh, as well as the construction of 10 jetties for a canal project. Around 15.5 kilometers of the projected 93-kilometer canal from Sonamura in Tripura’s Sepahijala district to Daudkandi in the neighboring nation need dredging, he added.
“The Ministry of Shipping has sanctioned Rs 24.53 crore for dredging operations in Gomati and the building of ten floating jetties from Udaipur in Gomati district to Sonamura,” said L Darlong, senior secretary of the state transport department.
Only 1.5 kilometers in India and 14 kilometers in the neighboring countries are suggested to be dredged to enhance transboundary river navigability, he added.
“The Centre would raise the dredging problem with the Bangladesh government, and the Bangladesh government will begin such work,” he added.
According to the official, a permanent jetty would be built at Srimantapur Land Customs Station in Sonamura at a cost of Rs 5.04 crore.
“IWAI has already issued a tender for the building of a permanent jetty at Srimantapur, we learned. To speed up the project, the authorities were instructed to complete the contract awarding procedure as quickly as possible “he said
By the end of May, the Centre hopes to have boats with a carrying capacity of 200-300 tonnes sailing from Daudkandi to Sonamura.
Sarbananda Sonowal, the Union Minister of Ports and Shipping, would visit the state on February 15 to assess the project’s development, he said.
In September 2020, a trial run on the canal connecting Bangladesh and Tripura was completed.
