India's plan over multi-model connectivity in northeastern territory including its proposed 16 waterway projects mostly involving Bangladesh has been on its way to bring profit to both the nations.

Bangladesh has already plucked its fruit by receiving the first-ever cargo ship carrying stone aggregates from Bhutan using Indo-Bangladesh Protocol route.

It was formally received by Indian High Commissioner Riva Ganguly Das, Bhutanese Ambassador Sonam T Rabgye and a representative of Bangladeshi business group at Narayanganj on July 18.

Bangladesh and India have been using four inland water routes since 1972 which are Kolkata-Karimganj and Kolkata-Pandu (in southern Assam) via Bangladesh, Karimganj-Pandu-Karimganj via Bangladesh and Rajshahi (in Bangladesh)-Dhulian (in southern Assam).

Tripura government's Principal Secretary (Transport) Laihlia Darlong said that the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) officials informed them about a discussion over proposed waterways between India and Bangladesh would be held in the foreign secretary-level meeting in Dhaka in October.

He said also that the Rs 24.83 billion proposed waterway (project) between Tripura and Bangladesh would also be discussed in that meeting.

The total expenditure of the new waterway projects between Bangladesh and India would be carried by the Indian government only, he added.

The IWAI officials said that the proposed 18 km waterway between Gomati (Tripura) and Meghna (Bangladesh) will get the Detailed Project Report (DPR) which will be finalised by September.

The dredging work of 15km Meghna River in Bangladesh and three km Tripura's Gomati River in India has to be completed to create the new waterway between the two countries.

The proposed site at Sonamura in western Tripura was recently visited by a joint technical committee of India and Bangladesh.

Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) would construct the terminal for the proposed river waterway at Sonamura.

Biplab Kumar Deb, Chief Minister of Tripura undertook the proposed waterway project on special priority basis after he became the head of the Indian state.

Tripura Chief Minister gave the special priority as waterway is always a fuel-efficient and environment-friendly mode of transport between the mountainous northeastern state and Bangladesh.