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To strengthen connectivity with Southeast Asia, the government is likely to kickstart work on highway from Meghalaya to Myanmar, as part of the India-Myanmar-Thailand trilateral pact, from next month.
“We will probably start work on Meghalaya to Myanmar project from next month. The cost of the project is Rs 5,000 crore,” Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari told reporters here. India, Thailand and Myanmar are working on a 1,400 km long highway that would link the country with Southeast Asia by land for the first time in decades, a move which would give a boost to trade, business, health, education and tourism among the countries. Further, addressing the conclave on green ports and oil spill management, the Union minister said the government is planning a waterway connectivity up to Myanmar via Bangladesh using Brahmaputra river, and expects the project to be completed soon.
“Waterways are more cost effective than roads and railways and so any goods required to be traded to Myanmar or Bangladesh could be done in a very cost effective manner. This will finish before 2018,” Gadkari said. With the Cabinet approving Rs 2,000 crore from a central fund for development of water transport, operationalising at least 10 of the 111 national waterways by next year is on top of the government’s agenda. Massive work worth Rs 5,000 crore is already underway on Ganga (1,620 km), with World Bank assistance, which is the National Waterway No 1. The work includes development of three multi-modal hubs at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, Haldia in West Bengal and Sahebganj in Bihar.
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