Assam: The government intends to operate the world’s longest luxury river cruise from Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, to Dibrugarh, Assam, via Bangladesh. The government hopes to launch the service next year in order to boost the development of India’s inland waterways.
Sarbananda Sonowal, Minister of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways stated in an interview that the Ganga Vilas cruise will sail from Varanasi to Dibrugarh in 50 days, covering 27 river systems and visiting over 50 tourist sites, including World Heritage Sites.
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The cruise will depart from Varanasi on January 10 and will cover 4,000 kilometers in 50 days. According to reports, it will pass through Kolkata and Dhaka before arriving in Bogibeel in the Dibrugarh district of India’s eastern state Assam on March 1.
#India’s Antara Luxury River #Cruises is planning a river journey in #December 2022. It is touted as the world’s longest #river #journey that will set off on a 51-day journey aboard the company’s #Antara #Ganga Vilas ship that will pass through the #Ganges & #Brahmaputra.#travel pic.twitter.com/r0GPH6MEyB
— Manishaa Dubey (@iflynfeast) June 22, 2022
Sarbananda Sonowal, Minister of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways stated in an interview that the Ganga Vilas cruise will sail from Varanasi to Dibrugarh in 50 days, covering 27 river systems and visiting over 50 tourist sites, including World Heritage Sites. The Minister went on to say that this will be the world’s largest river voyage by river ship, putting both India and Bangladesh on the global cruise map.
The public-private partnership (PPP) model is expected to be used for the Varanasi-Dibrugarh cruise. The government’s Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) has signed an agreement for the initiative with Antara Luxury River Cruises and JM Baxi River Cruises. The ticket price would be determined by the operators without the intervention of the Centre, according to the report.