India has taken a historic step in inland waterway navigation with the laying of foundation stones for four river lighthouses along the Brahmaputra River by Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal. The ceremony at Lachit Ghat, Guwahati, was jointly organized by the Directorate General of Lighthouses and Lightships (DGLL) and the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), under the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways.
The four lighthouses – Bogibeel in Dibrugarh, Pandu in Kamrup (Metro), Silghat in Nagaon, all on the south bank, and Biswanath Ghat in Biswanath, the only north bank site are strategically positioned along National Waterway-2 (NW-2), a critical corridor for cargo, passengers, and tourism in Assam. The combined project outlay of Rs 84 crore will fund lighthouses rising 20 metres high, each with a geographical range of 14 nautical miles and a luminous range of 8–10 nautical miles, fully powered by solar energy.
In addition to navigational functions, each lighthouse will feature a museum, amphitheatre, cafeteria, children’s play area, souvenir shop, and landscaped public spaces, making them tourism landmarks as well as functional maritime assets.
The commissioning of these lighthouses comes in response to a 53 percent surge in cargo traffic on the Brahmaputra in 2024–25, according to IWAI. The waterway is now central to supply chains for Assam’s tea, coal, and fertiliser industries, while also carrying passenger and tourism traffic. The lighthouses will enable 24×7 safe navigation, accommodate weather observation sensors, and provide the infrastructure necessary for sustained growth of freight and passenger movement on the river.
“Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, inland waterways are not just alternatives to roads and railways; they are being developed as a force multiplier for the economy. Moving a tonne of freight by water costs a fraction of road transport, generates far less carbon, and frees highways for passengers and time-sensitive goods. These Brahmaputra lighthouses are a clear statement that India’s rivers are open for business round the clock,” said Sonowal.
The ceremony saw participation from senior officials and political leaders, including Ranjeet Kumar Dass, Charan Boro, Jayanta Mallabaruah, Bijuli Kalita Medhi, and Siddhartha Bhattacharya, along with Vijay Kumar, IAS, Secretary, MoPSW, and N. Muruganandam, DGLL Director General.
The project was conceived following an initiative by the Minister’s Office to explore the feasibility of river lighthouses in the Northeast. An MoU between IWAI and DGLL was signed on April 8, 2025, covering all four sites.
Sites were transferred to DGLL under Right of Use agreements in June 2025, after technical proposals were placed before the Central Advisory Committee for Aids to Navigation. Each lighthouse is scheduled for completion within 24 months, following geotechnical surveys, topographic studies, and detailed design.
Sonowal highlighted the economic and environmental benefits: “Fewer emissions, reduced road wear, lower accident risk, and a more resilient supply chain — these lighthouses will make night navigation safe and reliable, removing the biggest barrier to round-the-clock waterway operations.”
NW-2, stretching 891 km from Dhubri to Sadiya, is the longest navigable waterway in India, passing through the heart of the Northeast. The four lighthouses mark the beginning of a wider programme to equip inland waterways with navigational safety infrastructure comparable to coastal shipping standards.
The DGLL, under MoPSW, oversees navigation aids across India’s 11,098-km coastline, while IWAI manages over 20,000 km of national waterways, maintaining terminals and infrastructure to facilitate cargo and passenger movement across rivers, backwaters, and creeks.
