National Waterways Act, 2016.

Provisions:

• The Bill identifies 101 waterways as national waterways, in addition to the five existing national waterways.
• The Bill also specifies the extent of development to be undertaken on each waterway.
• The Bill repeals the five Acts that had declared the existing national waterways. These five national waterways will be covered under the proposed Bill.

 

Positives of the Bill:

• Expands the number of National Waterways to 101 from the current level of 5, thereby creating provision for expansion of inland waterway network.
• Inland waterways are recognized as a fuel-efficient, cost-effective, and environment-friendly mode of transport

 

Issues and Analysis:

• Technical feasibility: Many of the proposed national waterways do not have sufficient water levels throughout the year as they are rain-fed rivers. This should be addressed during the time of techno-economic feasibility study.
• Financial sanctions: Currently, developmental works on some existing national waterways are not satisfactory due to a lack of timely financial sanctions at the initial stage. Sufficient financial allocations should be made at appropriate times for the effective implementation of projects proposed in the Bill.
• Involvement of states: While the subject of national waterways is on the Union List of the Constitution, water (includes irrigation and canals) is on the State List. The government must make suitable provisions in the Bill to ensure that states can continue to regulate water.
• New authorities and policies: The Bill states that the101 waterways will be dealt with on a case-to-case basis under various environmental laws such as the Environment Protection Act, 1986, the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, the Indian Forest Act, 2006, and the Coastal Regulation Zone Notification. Getting the required clearances for waterways under these many laws will not be easy. A special cell should be set up, with the consent of the heads of all the concerned Ministries.
• Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI): The current organizational setup and offices of the IWAI are not sufficient enough to undertake the tasks related to the 101 proposed waterways. The IWAI should be strengthened with extra manpower and expertise in the field along with more regional offices for better monitoring of its works in different states.