Prime Minister Modi flagged off World’s Longest River Cruise

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi will flag off World’s Longest River Cruise-MV Ganga Vilas and will inaugurate Tent City at Varanasi on 13th January at 10.00 AM via video conferencing. Prime Minister will also inaugurate and lay the foundation stones for several other inland waterways projects worth more than Rs. 1000 crores during the event.

MV Ganga Vilas –

MV Ganga Vilas will begin its journey from Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh and travel around 3,200 km in 51 days to reach Dibrugarh in Assam via Bangladesh, sailing across 27 river systems in India and Bangladesh. MV Ganga Vilas has three decks, 18 suites on board with a capacity of 36 tourists, with all the luxury amenities. The maiden voyage has 32 tourists from Switzerland signing up for the entire length of the journey.

Today, Hon’ble PM Shri @narendramodi will flag off World’s longest river cruise journey starting from Varanasi to Dibrugarh via Bangladesh covering 3200 km crossing 5 states and 2 countries. #LongestRiverCruise pic.twitter.com/6SHapl8cTo

— Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (@shipmin_india) January 13, 2023

The MV Ganga Vilas cruise is curated to bring out the best of the country to be showcased to the world. The 51 days cruise is planned with visits to 50 tourist spots including World Heritage Sites, National Parks, River Ghats, and major cities like Patna in Bihar, Sahibganj in Jharkhand, Kolkata in West Bengal, Dhaka in Bangladesh and Guwahati in Assam. The journey will give the tourists an opportunity to embark upon an experiential voyage and indulge in the art, culture, history, and spirituality of India and Bangladesh.

In line with Prime Minister’s endeavour to boost river cruise tourism, the huge untapped potential of river cruises will get unlocked with the launch of this service and it will herald a new age of river cruise tourism for India.

Tent City at Varanasi –

Tent City has been conceptualised on the banks of the River Ganga to tap the potential of tourism in the region. The project has been developed opposite to city ghats which will provide accommodation facilities and cater to the increased tourist influx in Varanasi, especially since the inauguration of Kashi Vishwanath Dham. It has been developed by Varanasi Development Authority in PPP mode. The tourists will reach the Tent City by boats from different Ghats situated in the vicinity. The tent city will be operational from October to June every year and will be dismantled for three months due to the rise in river water level in the rainy season.