Prime Minister Narendra Modi dropped off the world’s longest river cruise, the MV Ganga Vilas, in Varanasi via video conference on Friday. During the event, the Prime Minister also inaugurated Tent City in Varanasi and laid the foundations for several other inland waterway projects worth over £1000m. The flag-off ceremony will be held in the presence of Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath, among other ministers and senior officials from various ministries and departments. (Read also | MV Ganga Vilas Cruise: ₹20 lakh for the whole trip; how to book tickets)
All you need to know about Ganga Vilas cruise:
MV Ganga Vilas, operated by Antara Cruises, will cruise 3,200km across five states in India and parts of Bangladesh in 51 days. It will start its journey from Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh and reach Dibrugarh in Assam via Bangladesh.The ship with three decks is 62 meters wide and 12 meters wide.In addition to connecting National Waterway 1 (NW1), which includes the Ganga and National Waterway 2 (NW2) on Brahmaputra, the cruise will traverse 27 river systems.It has 18 suites on board with a capacity of 36 tourists, with all luxury amenities. Suites have soothing interiors and come equipped with plenty of amenities like Juliet balconies, LED TVs, safes, smoke detectors, and convertible beds, according to an official with the UP tourism department.The cruise ship also has a 40-seat main deck restaurant, spa and sundeck. There is a bar on the upper deck.The 51-day cruise is scheduled with visits to 50 tourist attractions including World Heritage Sites, National Parks, River Ghats and major cities such as Patna in Bihar, Sahibganj in Jharkhand, Kolkata in West Bengal, Dhaka in Bangladesh and Guwahati in Assam.Sonowal said the trip will give foreign tourists an opportunity to embark on an experiential journey and indulge in the arts, culture, history and spirituality of India and Bangladesh.For the maiden voyage, 32 tourists from Switzerland have registered for the entire journey.The cruise was scheduled to reach Varanasi on January 6, but weather conditions and poor visibility meant that it reached Ghazipur, 65 km from Varanasi, on January 8.The tourists were guided to the tomb of Lord Cornwallis in Ghazipur, Ganga Aarti at Dashashwamedh Ghat and the newly renovated corridor of Kashi Vishwanath.ABOUT THE AUTHOR
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