Varanasi: World's longest river cruise vessel, MV Ganga Vilas, will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Varanasi on Friday, Asian News International reported.
Modi will virtually do the inauguration of the vessel, the first cruise vessel to be made in India. The ship is 62 m long and 12 m wide. It needs a draft of 1.4 m and houses 18 suites to carry a maximum of 36 passengers.
As part of the inauguration, the PM will release the document "River Cruise Vision Document 2047", which summarizes the government's vision for growth and progress in waterways by 2047.
An official from Port, Shipping and Waterways told ANI that MV Ganga Vilas would be a symbol of Atmanirbhar Bharat (Self-reliant India)in the river cruise sector.
The cruise vessel will be starting from Varanasi, travelling 3,200km in 51 days, reaching Dibrugarh in Assam, passing through Bangladesh.
The cruise will be flagged off in the presence of the Minister o Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and other ministers as well as senior officials.
As per Minister Sonowal, the maiden voyage of the cruise will host 32 tourists from Switzerland across 27 river systems. The vessel will cruise by prominent riverbank destinations Varanasim Patna, Kolkata, Bangladesh Guwahati and Sibsagar or Dibrugarh.
He said that the ship is a culmination of PM Narendra Modi's vision of turning waterways into a source of development for the nation. The government is developing more than 100 waterways all over India, developing a waterway's ecosystem, and aiding tourism. He claimed that this would empower local businesses along the banks.