A National Sea Waterways Programme, comparable with the National Highways Development Project (NHDP) is in the pipeline, the Ministry of Shipping announced on Tuesday. The new programme will stimulate domestic shipping and encourage the use of inland waterways for transporting goods and people, Shipping Minister Shatrughan Sinha told reporters. "We are considering a proposal to establish a national sea waterways programme bringing channel development directly under the Centre," Mr Sinha said. He said the Sea Waterways Programme would be similar to the NHDP, which will create a 13,500-km highway grid by 2008.