Though the administration is yet to receive any formal programme of Modi from the Prime Minister’s Office, preparations for the programme are underway
Ganga Vilas, world’s longest cruise tour, will be flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday (January 13), Information and Public Relations Department of Uttar Pradesh said on Thursday. The cruise will take off from Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh to Dibrugarh in Assam via Bangladesh.
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Though the administration is yet to receive any formal programme of Modi from the Prime Minister’s Office, preparations for the programme are underway, district authorities said.
Varanasi Divisional Commissioner Kaushal Raj Sharma and District Magistrate S Rajalingam have given necessary instructions in this regard to the officials of Culture department, Tourism department and Inland Waterways Transport.
Here’s all you need to know about the ambitious cruise:
- The Ganga Vilas cruise would sail on two of the greatest rivers of India-Ganga and Brahmaputra.
- The cruise after leaving Varanasi will pass through Ghazipur, Buxar and Patna before reaching Kolkata.
- The cruise will stay on Bangladesh rivers for a fortnight and thereafter will return to India via Guwahati and reach Dibrugarh.
- This vessel will also pass through national parks and sanctuaries, including Sundarban Delta and Kaziranga National Park.
- After covering a total distance of 3,200 kms, the cruise will complete the longest voyage in the world.
- On Thursday Sharma said that the world’s longest cruise from Varanasi to Dibrugarh will be flagged off on January 13.
- The cruise will be flagged off from the jetty boarding point opposite to Ravidas Ghat.
- The cruise will have a capacity of 80 passengers with 18 suits.
- This journey will take a total of 50 days, and the cruise will stop at more than 50 places, including World Heritage Sites on its way.
- The river cruise will be operated by private players Antara Luxury River Cruises and JM Baxi River Cruises along with the governmental partnership from the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI).
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People are eagerly awaiting the unveiling of the cruise and are lauding efforts made by the Modi government. “The Ganga Vilas cruise will have foreign nationals and it will send a message to the people of the world on India’s tourism and this cruise will be very helpful in attracting tourists,” news agency ANI quoted Sunil Upadhyay, a resident of Varanasi, as saying.
“History is being created in the tourism sector. This is the longest water ride in the world. The previous governments had not given much importance to the water transport sector. The Ganga Vilas will be sending the message of unity and Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat to the rest of the world,” said Arvind Mishra, another local.
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“Prime Minister Narendra Modi has changed the entire picture of Varanasi ever since he became a Member of Parliament from this constituency. Tourism has been developed in Varanasi as a big industry,” said Kaushal Pandey, another resident.
