From Bhupen Goswami
GUWAHATI : Welcoming ‘MV Ganga Vilas’, the world’s longest river cruise at its culminating destination in Dibrugarh, Sarbananda Sonowal, Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) hailed it as a historic and path-breaking event to be witnessed in the Inland Waterways sector since India’s Independence 75 years ago. MV Ganga Vilas arrived at Bogibeel at 02:30 PM today; as the dignitaries led by the Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal accorded a warm welcome to all the 28 foreign tourists travelling onboard. With the successful end of its maiden journey covering a distance of over 3200 kms, the MV Ganga Vilas opens up a new vista of opportunity in the river tourism potential in the entire South Asia region. Earlier, tPrime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off MV Ganga Vilas – the first indigenously made cruise vessel in India – from Varanasi on January 13, 2023.
Built with a unique design and a futuristic vision, the cruise has three decks and 18 suites on board with a capacity of 36 tourists. It is already booked for to and fro journey for the next two years. During this epoch making journey, the tourists travelling onboard had an opportunity to travel via iconic places like Patna Sahib, Bodh Gaya, Vikramshila, Dhaka, the Sunderbans and the Kaziranga before reaching Dibrugarh in Assam.
