On Friday 13th January 2023, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the world’s longest river cruise ‘MV Ganga Vilas’ and tent city in his Lok Sabha constituency Varanasi via video conferencing. He flagged off the world’s longest river cruise MV Ganga Vilas between Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh and Dibrugarh in Assam.
The Prime Minister then inaugurated the Haldia Multi-Modal Terminal and the Community Jetty of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. He also inaugurated a ship repair facility and an elevated road at Pandu Terminal in Guwahati. In his address after the inauguration program, PM Modi said that the river cruise will create a new light of development wherever it passes. He said that similar arrangements for cruise tourism in the river waterways are being prepared across the country.
Union Minister for Ports, Shipping, and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath were present at the event. Bihar Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, and the Prime Minister attended the inauguration ceremony through video conferencing.
In his address, PM Modi said, “This Ganga Vilas Cruise will provide all kinds of facilities during the journey of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Bangladesh, and Assam. This cruise journey is going to bring many new experiences together. This Ganga Vilas cruise will pass through 25 different rivers and is also a great opportunity for those who want to experience the rich cuisine of India. That is, we will see a wonderful confluence of India’s heritage and modernity in this journey.”
About the river Ganga, PM Modi said, “The River Ganga is not just a stream of water for us, but has been witness to ascetics since ancient times. Mother Ganga has always nourished and inspired Indians. The Ganga belt lagged behind after independence. Lakhs of people migrated, and it was necessary to change this situation so we started working with new thinking. On the one hand, he worked for the cleanliness of Ganga through Namami Gange Project, on the other hand, we also worked on Arth Ganga and created a new environment of economic activity.”
Pm Modi further said, “In 2014, there were only 5 national waterways in India, today work is being done to develop 111 national waterways in 24 states. Services are running on about two dozen of these waterways. With the amazing tent city built across the Ganga in Kashi, tourists and devotees from all over the country and the world have got another major reason to come and stay there.”
PM Modi added, “This new era of cruise tourism will give new employment-self-employment opportunities to our young friends in this sector. This will be an attraction for foreign tourists. Tourists from the country who used to go abroad for such experiences earlier, will also now be able to move to east and northeast India.”
PM Modi said, “This cruise will bring a new light of development wherever it passes. Apart from long river cruises between cities, we are also promoting shorter cruises in different cities. Such a system is going on in Kashi too. From budget to luxury cruises, attention is being paid to every type of facility.”
Measuring 62.5 m (length), 12.8 m (width), and 1.35 m (draft), Ganga Vilas is the first river cruise ship built in India, according to authorities. The ship has 18 suits, along with various facilities and amenities like a restaurant, spa, and sundeck.