The Odisha government has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the development of National Waterways-5 (NW-5) and National Waterways-64 (NW-64) with an investment of Rs 12,200 crore.

The agreement, signed at India Maritime Week 2025 in Mumbai, involves the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), Paradip Port Authority (PPA), Mahanadi Coalfields (MCL), and the Odisha government. This initiative aims to facilitate the smooth transportation of coal and bulk commodities from the Talcher coalfields to Paradip and Dhamra ports using inland water routes. The project will be executed through the Inland Waterways Consortium of Odisha (IWCOL).

In addition, Odisha has sealed nine major investment agreements worth Rs 50,000 crore for port, shipbuilding, and cruise infrastructure development. These efforts align with the state's goal to increase port handling capacity to 500 million tonne by 2047.