The Prime Minister launched the MV Ganga Vilas from Varanasi on Friday, the travel, tourism, and hospitality industries received a symbolic boost. In collaboration with private parties, the Inland Waterways Authority will organize a luxurious 51-day cruise that will pass through several states and two countries, stopping at approximately 50 tourist and historic sites along the Ganga and Brahmaputra River systems.
About MV Ganga Vilas
The first indigenously built and longest riverboat in the world is MV Ganga Vilas.
The project to promote ship tourism is coordinated by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways.
The 36-person cruise features three decks, 18 suites on board, all the latest comforts, and avoids river pollution.
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The cruise offers a gym, a spa, a restaurant, a sun deck, and other amenities to keep the tourists entertained and to make their stay comfortable.
Journey of MV Ganga Vilas
Varanasi to Dibrugarh: The MV Ganga Vilas cruise ship will depart from Varanasi and travel 3,200 miles in 51 days, passing through 27 river systems and six states before arriving in Dibrugarh.
The sites covered include the following: Visits to 50 tourist destinations are scheduled during the journey, including stops at World Heritage sites, national parks, river ghats, and important cities including Patna in Bihar, Sahibganj in Jharkhand, Kolkata in West Bengal, Dhaka in Bangladesh, and Guwahati in Assam.
Pilgrimage combined with ecotourism: It will make pit stops to see Sarnath, a Buddhist landmark, the iconic Ganga Arti in Varanasi, and even Majuli, the largest river island in Assam.
What are the concerns highlighted?
Silting and pollution of rivers must be addressed on priority: There must be a solution for the two biggest problems affecting India’s rivers: silting and pollution.
Employment generation must go hand-in-hand with ecological repair: The jobs that riverine tourism could bring to states like Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar, and Assam have been mentioned by both the Prime Minister and Shipping & Ports Minister Sarbananda Sonowal. However, creating jobs must go hand in hand with environmental restoration.
Way Ahead
Participate in local communities: To help the government reach its objective of tripling the number of cruise passengers from 4 lahks to almost ten times that amount. However, for this expansion to be sustainable, local communities must be included.
Smaller craft may be involved: While there is potential for larger, more opulent ships, riverine tourism might also grow and accommodate visitors from various socioeconomic backgrounds. Also, smaller vessels may provide less of an ecological challenge.
Lesson to be learned from Kerala: An important lesson from Kerala While the Center’s initiative in the field, with the PM as its face, is to be applauded, states and the business sector must also be included. For instance, the east Indian states can learn a lot from Kerala’s management and use of its backwaters.
Further expansion with the world’s best practices: The Ganga trip, however, should only be the start of utilising India’s various and different river systems’ untapped potential for tourism. The growth must also consider the finest practices from all throughout India and the world while making sure that local populations and the environment are not overlooked.
Conclusion
The labor-intensive hospitality industry may be able to fill some of the formal employment that India’s economy, which is in transition, so urgently needs. India can safeguard its rivers and generate jobs at the same time if it is diligent and innovative in its planning, given the expanding worldwide market for environmentally conscious travel.
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