Guwahati: Movement of goods and passengers has become easier and faster to Garo Hills region of Meghalaya with Inland Water Authority of India (IWAI) starting operation of a state-of-the-art roll-on roll-off (Ro-Ro) vessel on Brahmaputra River between Dhubri and Hatsingimari in western part of Assam thereby reducing a 220 km circuitous travel distance by road to just 29 km on the river.
Named MV Gopinath Bardoloi, after Assam’s first chief minister, the vessel whose operation was started on Saturday, would make goods and passenger movement to the Garo Hills region of western Meghalaya easier and faster, according to a statement issued by the IWAI.
“Regular movement of the vessel, between Dhubri on the north bank and Hatsingimari on the south bank of the Brahmaputra, will prove a boon for the region by drastically bridging the distance for cargo and passenger movement,” it said.
The Ro-Ro vessel, built at a cost of Rs 10 crore, can ferry eight loaded trucks and approximately 100 passengers. It made a successful trial run between Dhubri and Hatsingimari (in Goalpara district) last week, the IWAI said. The road distance between the two towns, crossing the Brahmaputra on Naranarayan Setu connecting Jogighopa with Pancharatna, is 220 km. In April, the vessel had transported eight Army trucks and 20 security personnel from Guwahati to Dibrugarh, the IWAI informed.