Important National Highways, Waterways and ports in India

07th Sept 2021

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Important National Highways in India

  • According to the Ministry of Roads, Transport and Highways (MoRTH), there are 599 National Highways in India. Over a period of time, the numbering of National Highways in India has been renewed. The total length of National Highways is 132500 Kms.
  • National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is an autonomous authority to develop, maintain, and manage the National Highways of India. Central Government has the power to notify any highway as the National Highway and such highway will be specified in the Schedule.
  • The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways is responsible for the development of National Highways.
  • The government launched the Bharatmala Project for the development of about 26,000 km length of Economic Corridors, which along with Golden Quadrilateral (GQ) and North-South and East-West (NS-EW) Corridors are expected to carry the majority of the Freight Traffic on roads.
National HighwayLength (in kilometers)Route
NH 44 (old NH 7)3,745Srinagar to Kanyakumari
NH 273,507Porbandar in Gujarat to Silchar in Assam
NH 48 (old NH 8)2,807Delhi to Chennai
NH 522,317Sangrur, Punjab to Ankola, Karnataka
NH 30 (Old NH 221)2,040Sitarganj in Uttarakhand to Ibrahimpatnam in Andhra Pradesh.
NH 61,873Jorabat in Meghalaya and terminates at Selling in Mizoram
NH 531,781Hajira in Gujarat and Pradip port in Odisha.
NH 16 (Old NH 5)1,711East coast of West Bengal to Chennai in Tamil Nadu.
NH 66 (Old NH 17)1,622Panvel and terminates at Kanyakumari
NH 19 (Old NH 20)1,435Delhi to Kolkata
NH 341,426Gangotri Dham in Uttarakhand to Lakhnadon in Madhya Pradesh

Operational National Waterways in India:

Sl. No.NW NumberRiver SystemRouteLength (in km)LocationsEstablished
1NW – 1Ganga-Bhagirathi-HooghlyPrayagraj – Haldia1620Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal1986
2NW – 2BrahmaputraSadiya-Dhubri891Assam1988
3NW – 3West Coast Canal, Champakara Canal, and Udyogamandal CanalKottapuram – Kollam205Kerala1993
4NW – 4Krishna and GodavariKakinada–Puducherry stretch of canals, Kaluvelly Tank, Bhadrachalam – Rajahmundry, Waziraba–Vijayawada1095Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Puducherry2008
5NW – 10Amba River45Maharashtra
6NW – 83Rajpuri Creek31Maharashtra
7NW – 85Revadanda Creek – Kundalika River System31Maharashtra
8NW – 91Shastri river–Jaigad creek system52Maharashtra
9NW – 68Mandovi – Usgaon Bridge to the Arabian Sea41Goa
10NW – 111Zuari– Sanvordem Bridge to Marmugao Port50Goa
11NW – 73Narmada River226Gujarat and Maharashtra
12NW – 100Tapi River436Gujarat and Maharashtra
13NW – 97 (Sundarbans Waterways)Namkhana to AtharaBankiKhalIndo-Bangladesh Protocol Route172West Bengal

List of New Waterways in India

StateNo. of rivers/canalName of the River / Canal
Andhra Pradesh2Pennar and Tungabhadra
Arunachal Pradesh1Lohit
Assam14Aai, Barak, Beki, Dhansiri / Chathe, Dehing, Dikhu, Doyans, Gangadhar, Jinjiram, Kopili, Lohit, Puthimari, Subansiri and Tlwang (Dhaleswari)
Bihar6Gandak, Ghaghra, Karamnasa, Kosi, Punpun and Sone
Delhi1Yamuna
Goa6Chapora, Cumberjua, Mandovi, Mapusa, Sal and Zuari
Gujarat5Jawai-Luni – Rann of Kutch, Mahi, Narmada, Sabarmati and Tapi
Haryana2Indira Gandhi Canal and Yamuna
Himachal Pradesh3Beas, Ravi and Sutlej
Jammu & Kashmir4Chenab, Indus, Jhelum and Ravi
Jharkhand2Kherkai and Subarnarekha
Karnataka11Bheema, Ghataprabha, Gurupur, Kabini, Kali, Malaprabha, Netravathi, Panchagangavali (Panchagangoli), Sharavati, Tungabhadra and Udayavara
Kerala4AVM Canal, Alappuzha- Changanassery Canal, Alappuzha- Kottayam – Athirampuzha Canal and Kottayam-Vaikom Canal
  Amba, Arunawati – Aran, Dabhol Creek – Vashishti River, Kalyan-Thane-Mumbai Waterway – Vasai Creek – Ulhas River, Manjara, Nag, Narmada, Penganga – Wardha, Rajpuri Creek, Revadanda Creek – Kundalika River, Savitri (Bankot Creek), Shastri River – Jaigad Creek, Tapi and Wainganga – Pranahita
Maharashtra14
Meghalaya5Ganol, Jinjiram, Kynshi, Simsang and Umngot (Dawki)
Mizoram1Tlwang (Dhaleswari)
Nagaland1Tizu – Zungki
Odisha5Baitarni, Birupa – Badi Genguti – Brahmani, Budha Balanga, Mahanadi and Subarnarekha
Punjab3Beas, Indira Gandhi Canal and Sutlej
Rajasthan3Indira Gandhi Canal, Jawai-Luni – Rann of Kutch and Luni
Tamil Nadu9AVM Canal, Bhavani, Kaveri – Kollidam, Manimutharu, Palar, Pazhyar, Ponniyar, Tamaraparani and Vaigai
Telangana5Bheema, Manjara, Penganga – Wardha, Tungabhadra and Wainganga – Pranahita
Uttar Pradesh10Asi, Betwa, Chambal, Gandak, Ghaghra, Gomti, Karamnasa, Tons, Varuna and Yamuna

Transportation plays an important role in the development of a country and it is of great significance for a developing country like India. The country is bestowed with a plethora of diverse topography which enables different kinds of transportation. India has about 14500 km of navigable waterways. This includes rivers, backwaters, canals, creeks, and so on.

  • National Waterways Act came into effect in 2016. It proposed 106 additional National Waterways and merges 5 existing Acts which were declared the 5 National Waterways. As a result, 106 new waterways were identified by IWAI and intimated to MoS. In this regard, the National Waterways Act, 2016 was published in the Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part II, Section I dated 26th March, 2016 as an Act No. 17 of 2016
  • In 1986, the Government of India created the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) for regulation and development of Inland Waterways for navigation and shipping.
  • Out of the 111, National Waterways declared under the National Waterways Act, 2016, 13 are operational for shipping and navigation and cargo/passenger vessels are moving on them.

Major Sea Ports in India 

Major Sea Ports  Currently, there is a total of 13 major seaports in India currently among which 12 are government-controlled and one, Ennore port of Chennai is the corporate one. These are located in the 9 coastal Indian states (Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, and West Bengal).

S. No.StateName of PortPoints to Remember
1.KeralaKochi Port or Cochin Portlocated on the Willington island on the South-Western coast of India The port is generally called as the natural gateway for the industrial and agricultural produce markets of South-West India. Exports of spices, tea, and coffee. It is one of the centers for shipbuilding.
2. Tamil NaduEnnoreIndia’s First corporatized port and 12th major port of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast about 24 km north of the Chennai Port. Trades: Iron Ore, Coal, petroleum products and chemicals
3.West BengalHaldiaSituated on Hugli river Formed to relieve pressure on Kolkata port
4. West BengalKolkata PortIt is the only riverine major port in India. Known for twin dock systems viz. Kolkata Dock on the eastern bank and Haldia Dock on the western bank of river Hooghly Trade: Jute, tea, Coal, Steel 
5.GujaratKandlaKnown as Tidal Port located in the Gulf of Kutch It was constructed after partition when Karachi Port was transferred to Pakistan. It also relieves the congestion of Mumbai Port Largest port by volume of cargo handled. It has been acknowledged as Trade Free Zone
6.KarnatakaMangaloreIt is deep water, all weathered port. Deals with the iron ore exports It is the only major port of the coastal state of Karnataka.
7.GoaMarmagoaSituated on the estuaries of the river Juari It is a natural harbour It was awarded the status of a major port in the year 1963. It is a leading iron ore exporting port in India.
8.MaharashtraMumbaiLargest Natural Port and harbor In India  Earlier, this port location was used by the navies of Shivaji. This port has 3 enclosed wet docks:  Prince’s Dock Victoria Dock Indira Dock The busiest Port in India Jawahar Dweep is an island in the harbor, for Crude and petroleum products handling.
9.MaharashtraJawaharlal Nehru Port or Nhava Sheva Port Largest Artificial Port and also the largest container port of India. The name Nhava Sheva is given because of the names of two villages that existed in that area. It is located on the eastern shore of Mumbai harbor off Elephanta Island and can be accessed via Thane Creek. This port is the terminal point of the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor of Indian Railways. Trade: Textiles, sporting goods, carpets, pharmaceuticals, chemicals etc.
10.OdishaParadipFirst Major Port commissioned after Independence. Located at the confluence of Mahanadi river and Bay of Bengal. deals with the export of iron and aluminum and Iron ore is exported to Japan in huge quantity.
11.Tamil NaduTuticorinThis port has been renamed as V.O.Chidambaranar Port. It is an artificial port located in the Gulf of Mannar. It is famous for pearl fishery in the Bay of Bengal and thus also known as the pearl city. Trade:  coal, salt, petroleum products, and fertilizers 
12.Andhra PradeshVishakapatnamThis port is a natural harbor and also is the 2nd largest port by volume of cargo handled.  Port is located midway between the Chennai Port and Kolkata Port. Trade: Iron Ore, Coal, Alumina and oil. 
13.Tamil NaduChennaiChennai Port is the largest port on the East coast i.e. Bay of Bengal and the second largest port of India after JNPT. Artificial port.

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