Govt to launch world's longest river cruise of 4,000 km from Varanasi next year

In an attempt to push inland water development in India, the government has proposed that it will launch the world's longest luxury cruise. The 50-day cruise will sail from Varanasi to Dibrugarh through Bangladesh next year.

The cruise will set sail on January 10 from Varanasi and pass-through Kolkata and Dhaka, covering 4,000 km before reaching Bogibeel in Assam on March 1. In an interview, the Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal said that the Ganga Vilas cruise will sail from Varanasi to Dibrugarh in a longest river journey of 50 days covering 27 river systems and visit over 50 tourist sites including World Heritage Sites. The Minister added that this will be the single largest river journey by a river ship in the world put both India and Bangladesh on cruise map of the world.

Sonowal mentioned that development of coastal and river shipping, including cruise services, is one of the priorities of the government and that this help tap India's potential in this area. “Besides promoting passenger traffic on rivers, the development of inland waterway systems would also facilitate trade and cargo services and give a boost to tourism around the areas along its route."

The cruise is the first set of cruise liners that will run on a PPP model with the memorandum of understanding signed between the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) and Antara Luxury River Cruises and JM Baxi River Cruises.

The ticket price will be decided by the operators of the cruise without an intervention from the Centre. The cruise will cover almost 1,100 km in Bangladesh before re-entering India. It will complete its sail via the Indo-Bangladesh Protocol Route. The route has opened trade and transit channels between India and Bangladesh as it connects the Ganga and Brahmaputra rivers.

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