Projects under the India's ‘Act East Policy’

• Unlike Look East which focussed on Economic Cooperation with ASEAN nations, Act East focuses on the extended neighborhood in Asia-Pacific and involves Security cooperation as well.

About Act East Policy

• It aims at promoting economic cooperation, connectivity, trade cultural ties and developing a strategic relationship with countries in the Indo-pacific region.
• It aims a proactive and pragmatic approach and thereby improving the economic development of the North Eastern Region (NER) which is a gateway to the South-East Asia Region.
• AEP provides an interface between North East India including the state of Arunachal Pradesh and the ASEAN region.

Government Sanctioned Projects

Kaladan Multimodal Transit Transport Project

• The objective of the project is to provide an alternative connectivity to the North East Region from the Kolkata/Haldia port through Sittwe Port- Kaladan river.
• By using waterway and Paletwa to Zorinpui by Road in Mizoram and provide an alternate route between the landlocked North-East and the rest of India.
• The Ministry of External Affair is the nodal Ministry for implementation.
• Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) is the Project Development Consultant (PDC) for this project.

Protocol on Inland Water Transit and Trade (PIWT&T)

• North Eastern States are connected with eastern part of India through river Brahmaputra (NW-2) and river Barak (NW-16).
• The Indo-Bangladesh Protocol (IBP) route has been under a Protocol on Inland Water Transit and Trade (PIWT&T) between India and Bangladesh since 1972.
• Under this Protocol, Inland vessels / cruises of one country can ply on the designated waterway routes of another country.

Chattogram and Mongla Ports MoU with Bangladesh

• It provides connectivity to Agartala (Tripura), Dawki (Meghalaya), Sutarkandi (Assam) and Srimantpur (Tripura) to Chattogram / Mongla Ports in Bangladesh.

Infrastructure projects on National Waterways in North Eastern Region (NER)

1. Comprehensive Project for development of National Waterway (NW)-2
   • The salient features of the projects being taken up are development of navigable fairway with day and night navigation aids and terminals.
   • The development of NW-2 enables waterway connectivity of North East region with Kolkata/Haldia ports via Indo-Bangladesh Protocol Route.
   • The major interventions under this project are:
     1. Construction of Jogighopa Terminal
     2. Alternative road to Pandu Port
     3. Ship repair facility at Pandu
     4. Construction of Tourist Jetties at Biswanathghat, Jogighopa, Pandu&Neamati.

2. Comprehensive Project for development of NW-16 & IBP route
   • The development is being carried out with fairway maintenance and Least Available Depth (LAD) along with navigation aids.
   • Action for upgradation of Badarpur and Karimganj terminals including customs and immigration facility at Karimganj terminal has been initiated.
   • The major interventions under this project are:
     1. Construction of Terminal at Sonamura on Gumti river
     2. Construction of terminal at Maia on Ganga river
     3. Upgradation of Badarpur and Karimganj terminals.