Inland water transport is promoted as a cheaper and greener mode, yet its share of India's freight remains low. Analyse the reasons and suggest measures, with reference to the Brahmaputra.

Inland water transport (IWT) is the most economical mode for bulk cargo. Yet it carries only about 2% of India's freight, against a Maritime India Vision (MIV) 2030 target of 5% [1]. The Brahmaputra (NW-2) shows the gap clearly: the river has natural advantages but faces structural bottlenecks.

Reasons for the low modal share

• Waterways exist mostly on paper: only 23 of 111 notified national waterways work in practice, and five carry 80% of IWT cargo [2].
• Navigability: the braided, silt-heavy Brahmaputra needs constant maintenance dredging. Guaranteed depth (Least Available Depth, LAD) falls from 2.5 m (Dhubri–Neamati) to 2.0 m (Neamati–Dibrugarh) and 1.5 m beyond Dibrugarh [3]. Shallower water means lighter loads and a higher cost per tonne.
• Unreliable schedules: depth changes with the season, so shippers who need fixed delivery dates prefer road and rail.
• Hinterland gap: the Parliamentary Standing Committee (2023) named slow development, poor hinterland connectivity and costly vessels as the main deterrents [2]. Each extra loading and unloading wipes out part of the cost advantage.
• Cross-border dependence: cargo from the Northeast must pass through Bangladesh on the 1972 Protocol route, where India does not control channel depth [6].
• Thin anchor cargo: Dibrugarh's first international voyage (October 2026) carries methanol from a state PSU, APCL [5]. Whether private shippers will use the route is still untested.

Measures

• Performance-based dredging: pay contractors for keeping a guaranteed year-round LAD, not for the volume of silt removed. Bangladesh's World Bank-backed waterway project already does this [4].
• Joint channel upkeep: extend India–Bangladesh cost-sharing on developing the Protocol route (~₹305.84 crore) to yearly maintenance dredging [6].
• Multimodal links: build road and rail spurs to Bogibeel and other NW-2 terminals so goods can be moved from factory to buyer without breaks.
• Demand aggregation: run fixed-schedule sailings, and offer incentives to private shippers of Upper Assam's tea, fertiliser and petrochemicals.
• Ecological safeguards: require environmental assessment of dredging to protect aquatic biodiversity and fisheries.
• Outcome metrics: track yearly tonnage and the private share of cargo, not ceremonial "first voyages".

IWT's low share comes less from the rivers themselves than from gaps in depth, reliability and connectivity. With guaranteed depth, good hinterland links and assured cargo, the Brahmaputra can again become the Northeast's trade artery. That would advance MIV 2030's 5% goal [1] and SDG 9 on resilient infrastructure.