Talking Point. The start of a long voyage

Development of inland waterways as an alternate, eco-friendly mode of transport is long overdue in India. The Centre has, so far, declared only five National Waterways (NWs) through five separate Acts of Parliament.

'So, the recent National Waterways Bill, 2015, is remarkable as it declares 101 waterways as NWs through a single piece of legislation, in addition to the five existing NWs. The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), which is mandated to develop, maintain and regulate these for navigation, would be the nodal agency. There is huge potential for public private partnership-led investments in dredging, construction, operation and maintenance of barges, terminals, storage facilities and navigation, as well as tourism. Logistics players in power, cement, fertiliser, and edible oil space, as well as Food Corporation of India, stand to benefit. But the Bill comes with its own set of challenges.

Many of the rivers listed in the Schedule in the Bill generally remain dry. There is a need to develop water reservoirs for conservation of rain water to feed such rivers. There is a need to estimate the quantum of water required on a weekly basis throughout the year to maintain the minimum depth of water in the canals for navigability, besides ensuring that drinking, irrigation and other demands of water do not get impacted. Similarly, the cost savings from NW would never be realised unless vessels are able to load to their full tonnage. This is possible only if the rivers are deepened between 2.5 and 4.5 meters and if return cargo is made available for the vessel to avoid wasteful return trips. There is a need to stipulate and institutionalise these practices in the rules under the proposed Act.

Securing buy-in from the states is of paramount importance. The right over water usage and ownership of adjacent land remain with the state government. Once a canal is declared an NW, then for any development of infrastructure or even for withdrawal of water, the State should get permission of the IWAI and this undermines the authority of the state in local development. The right of the state governments to develop additional irrigation projects on the NWs would also be impaired.

Hence, specific provisions to protect the rights of the state government over the waterway even after its declaration as an NW may be provided for. The state representation shall be ensured in the proposed feasibility study. As water is a state subject, it is important to address this concern in the act or rules thereunder. Provision for making subordinate legislation and taking it to both Houses of Parliament is missing and has to be included in the Act to ensure that the NH Act serves its legislated purpose.

The additional burden of environmental approval that needs to be dealt with on a case-by-case basis under the Environment Protection Act, 1986, the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, the Indian Forest Act, 2006 and the Coastal Regulation Zone Notification, that too with different states, may be daunting.

The financing requirement for NWs is huge and open-ended. The Bill does not provide for any financing blueprint. Development and the prioritisation of projects and funding requirements would be finalised after the IWAI carries out feasibility studies. The challenge multiplies when projects need to be structured considering a different mix of PPP, multilateral funding and public funding. Also, the projects have to be technically feasible, economically and socially relevant, commercially viable and bankable, environmentally sustainable and legally tenable, calling for trained personnel.

The IWAI, the nodal agency, may need to be strengthened with trained manpower along with more regional offices to enable monitoring of the projects in different states. Apart from the IWAI, which is headquartered in Delhi, creation of a state-level water management committee may be vital to resolve the issues at the state level.

To sum up, the NW Bill is merely an enabling legislation to empower the Centre to develop our rivers for navigation. The voyage has just begun; there is a long sailing ahead.

The writer is a lawyer with J Sagar Associates

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