 "PM Modi to flag off luxury cruise 'MV Ganga Vilas' from Varanasi on Jan 13")
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Friday flag off the world's longest river cruise 'MV Ganga Vilas' from Varanasi, which will cover 3,200 kilometre across 27 river systems in five states in India and Bangladesh in 51 days.
The cruise is planned with visits to 50 tourist spots, including World Heritage Sites, National Parks, river ghats, and major cities like Patna in Bihar, Sahibganj in Jharkhand, Kolkata in West Bengal, Dhaka in Bangladesh and Guwahati in Assam, an official statement said on Sunday.
"The maiden voyage of MV Ganga Vilas will witness 32 tourists from Switzerland relishing the Varanasi to Dibrugarh journey," the statement said, adding that the expected date of arrival of MV Ganga Vilas in Dibrugarh is March 1,2023.
The cruise will begin its journey from the famous 'Ganga Aarti' in Varanasi and cover Sarnath, a place of great reverence for Buddhism; Mayong, known for its 'tantric' craft; and Majuli, the largest river island in the world and hub of Vaishnavite in Assam.
The travellers will also visit the Bihar School of Yoga and Vikramshila University.
As per the statement, the cruise will also traverse through the World Heritage Sites of Sunderbans in Bay of Bengal, famous for Royal Bengal Tigers, as well as Kaziranga National Park, famous for one-horned rhino.
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Speaking on the occasion, Union Port, Shipping and Waterways Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said the MV Ganga Vilas cruise is a step towards unlocking the huge potential of river tourism in the country. It will put India on the river cruise map of the world.
" Our rich heritage will get further transcended in the global stage as tourists will be able to experience the spiritual, educational...cultural as well as the richness of the biodiversity of India,"he said.
The MV Ganga Vilas vessel has three decks, 18 suites on board with a capacity of 36 tourists, with all the amenities to provide a memorable and luxurious experience for the tourists.
Highlighting the need to develop river cruise tourism in the country, Sonowal said the development of this sector would generate employment opportunity in the hinterland.
He said the river tourism circuits will be developed and integrated with the existing tourism circuits for maximum exposure and rapid development of this sector in the country.
According to the statement, the global river cruise market has grown at 5 per cent over the last few years and is expected to constitute 37 per cent of cruise market by 2027.
Europe has been driving the growth with approximately 60 per cent share of river cruise vessels in the world.
In India, 8 river cruise vessels are operational between Kolkata and Varanasi while cruise movement is also operational on National Waterways 2 (Brahmaputra).
The statement said construction of 10 passengers terminals across NW2 is going on which will further bolster the prospect of river cruise.
At present, four river cruise vessels are operational in NW2 while it is operating in limited capacity in NW3 (West Coast Canal), NW8, NW 4, NW 87, NW 97, and NW 5.