• About: The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) is an autonomous organization that was established on October 27, 1986, in accordance with the Inland Waterways Authority of India Act, 1985.
• Primary responsibility: The development, maintenance, and regulation of waterways that have been designated as National Waterways (NWs) under the National Waterways Act of 2016.

o      IWAI carries out the implementation of policy guidelines and directives issued by the Inland Water Transport (IWT) Wing.

• Headquarter: Noida, Uttar Pradesh.
• Regional offices: Guwahati (Assam), Patna (Bihar), Kochi (Kerala), Bhubaneswar (Odisha) and Kolkata (West Bengal).
• Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways.
• Jammu & Kashmir has three declared national waterways: River Chenab (NW-26) → River Jhelum (NW-49) → River Ravi (NW-84).