MV Ganga Vilas has three decks, 18 suites on board with a capacity of 36 tourists.
New Delhi:
Inaugurating the world’s longest river cruise named Ganga Vilas, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called it “a new era of tourism in India”, but Congress General Secretary Communications Jairam Ramesh termed it “obscene”.
Taking to Twitter, the Congress leader said that the service would also endanger India’s national aquatic mammal.
“The Ganga river cruise unveiled by the Prime Minister is obscene! Who can spend Rs 50 lakh per night except the rich? Ganga is still neither clean nor unpolluted. Now this spectacle is India’s national aquatic mammal – the Gangetic dolphin will also be put in danger.” Jairam Ramesh wrote in his tweet.
He later corrected his tweet in which the per night charge for the cruise was incorrect.
Correction: Rs. 50,000 per night https://t.co/5BDsLCwlzo
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) January 16, 2023
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday flagged off Ganga river cruise from Varanasi.
The 51-day cruise, which is being touted as the world’s longest river cruise, is expected to reach its final destination at Dibrugarh in Assam on March 1.
Virtually flagging off the cruise via video conference, Prime Minister Modi said, “The launch of the world’s longest river cruise service on river Ganga is a historic moment. It will usher in a new era of tourism in India.”
The cruise ship, MV Ganga Vilas, to set sail from Varanasi, will cover a distance of 3,200 kms in 51 days, crossing 27 river systems and several states before ending its journey at Dibrugarh. The journey is packed with visits to 50 tourist destinations 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.
MV Ganga Vilas Cruise is designed to showcase the best of the country to the world.
The tour will allow tourists to embark on an experiential journey and indulge in the art, culture, history and spirituality of India and Bangladesh.
MV Ganga Vilas has three decks with all luxury amenities, 18 suites with a capacity of 36 tourists. On the first trip, 32 tourists from Switzerland are signing up for the full length of the trip.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
featured video of the day
“India is expected to grow the fastest among the largest economies,” the WEF president told NDTV.