India will soon have its longest river cruise service connecting Uttar Pradesh and Assam. Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal, said that the service of a cruise between Varanasi and Bogibeel will begin next year. The cruise will be navigating more than 4,000 kilometres via Ganga, Indo Bangladesh Protocol Route (IBPR) and the Brahmaputra river.
Speaking at the launch of multiple projects in Assam’s Bogibeel on September 19, the minister stated that the start of the cruise services will open opportunities for the people of the state to use inland waterways in promoting trade and livelihood in tourism and cargo transportation.
Sonowal mentioned that the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is to harness the potential of an economic and ecologically sound logistics avenue of Inland waterways.
He added that the PM Gati Shakti National Master plan is going to be the key to unlocking the huge potential of inland water transportation in Assam using National Waterways 2 and the Brahmaputra river.
“We must tap this opportunity and build an economic advantage which will power the whole of Northeast India as the New Engine of growth for India. Our government is also identifying avenues to promote inland navigation, river cruise tourism, and construction of suitable terminals across the Brahmaputra," he added.
In the event, the Union Minister also laid foundation stones for the construction of two floating jetties at Bogibeel and Guijan. He inaugurated the Bogibeel Riverfront Passenger Jetty which has been developed by the Northeast Frontier Railways (NFR) as part of riverfront development near the Bogibeel bridge.
The two floating jetties will be constructed as state-for-terminals using the most advanced and updated technology. The project has been assigned to Coastal Consolidated Structures Pvt Ltd on an EPC contract mode (engineering, procurement, construction). The two jetties are estimated to be built at a cost of Rs 8.25 crore and scheduled to be completed by February, next year.
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