Union Budget 2026–27 Promotes Sustainable Cargo Movement With New Freight Corridors & National Waterways

New Delhi, Feb 1 (KNN) Presenting her ninth consecutive Budget in the Lok Sabha, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday proposed a series of initiatives to promote environmentally sustainable cargo movement.

The proposals include the establishment of new Dedicated Freight Corridors connecting Dankuni in the East to Surat in the West.

In addition, 20 new National Waterways (NWs) are planned to be operationalised over the next five years, beginning with NW-5 in Odisha.

This waterway will connect mineral-rich areas such as Talcher and Angul to industrial centres like Kalinga Nagar and the ports of Paradeep and Dhamra.

Training institutes will be set up as Regional Centres of Excellence to develop the manpower required for inland waterway operations, benefiting youth along the waterways. A ship repair ecosystem catering to inland water transport will also be established at Varanasi and Patna.

Furthermore, a Coastal Cargo Promotion Scheme will be launched to incentivise a modal shift from rail and road to inland waterways and coastal shipping, aiming to increase their share in cargo movement from 6 per cent to 12 per cent by 2047.

(KNN Bureau)