GUWAHATI: In the backdrop of the Namami Brahmaputra Festival, transport and commerce minister Chandra Mohan Patowary on Tuesday said both the Centre and the state government will leave no stone unturned in setting up international harbours dotting the mighty river.Hailing Namami Brahmaputra as a catalyst that would put the Brahmaputra on the global map of international waterways, he added that the initiatives will include dredging the river from Sadiya to Dhubri for which both the state and the Centre will expedite the process of signing an MoU with the Centre on April 4 and working with the Asian Development Bank for the project.The festival will begin from March 31 and will conclude on April 4. Aimed to serve as a platform to highlight Assam's potential in terms of commerce, trade and culture, the festival will cover 21 districts stretching along the river. "The ministry of external affairs will give us clearance to carry out dredging in parts bordering Bangladesh beyond Dhubri. We had discussed the matter with minister of state MEA, General (retired) VK Singh. The purpose of dredging is to bring the Brahmaputra to the international platform," said Patowary.Another initiative that is being chalked out and will be made operational this year is water taxis that would ferry people right from the airport to the city, completing the entire trip in only 18 minutes. Patowary said an estimated 25 crore customers are waiting for the gateway via Brahmaputra to be opened up. He added that modern jetties would be constructed on both sides of the river."Assam will be the hub of South East Asia and Namami Brahmaputra will send the message to the world. The Brahmaputra is an asset but hasn't been used as it should have been. No one knows that this river has accessibility to Chittagong port," added Patowary.

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