World’s Longest River Cruise and Indian Tourism
Source : PIB
GS II: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation; GS III : Economy

What is discussed under World’s Longest River Cruise and Indian Tourism?

1. About the Cruise Trip
2. Inland Waterway projects and Tourism Potential
3. Inland Waterways Authority of India

Why in News ?

Prime Minister flagged off the World’s Longest River Cruise-MV Ganga Vilas, will herald a new age of tourism in India

About the Cruise Trip

What is MV Ganga Vilas?

• The MV Ganga Vilas will set off from Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh and cruise 3,200 kilometres across Bangladesh and 27 river systems before arriving in Dibrugarh in Assam.
• The 36-passenger MV Ganga Vilas boasts three decks, 18 rooms, and a host of opulent amenities.
• 32 visitors from Switzerland have signed up for the whole duration of the first trip.

How this helps Indian tourism?

• The World’s Longest River Cruise will help to improve and attract Indian Tourism sector.
• India is a land of rivers that connect many states which boost river cruise tourism the huge untapped potential of river cruises will get unlocked with the launch of this service and it will herald a new age of river cruise tourism for India.
• The MV Ganga Vilas cruise is designed to highlight the finest of the nation for global exposure.
• 50 tourist destinations, including World Heritage Sites, National Parks, River Ghats, and important towns like Patna in Bihar, Sahibganj in Jharkhand, Kolkata in West Bengal, Dhaka in Bangladesh, and Guwahati in Assam, will be visited.
• The trip will provide visitors with the chance to travel and immerse themselves in Bangladeshi and Indian art, culture, history, and spirituality.

Inland Waterway projects and Tourism Potential

What is potential of Indian Inland Waterways?

• Inland waterways in India include a vast network of rivers, canals, backwaters, and creeks.
• Out of the 15,000 km total navigable length, mechanized ships may use around 5200 km of the river and 4000 km of the canals.
• The network only needs capital expenditures (capex) for renovation and upgrading, not new construction.
• Waterways are a cheaper mode of transportation which reduce the cost of tourism.
• The main example of water tourism is House Boat in Inland Kayal water tourism in Kerala.
• River Ganga and Yamuna in the North Narmada in the west Mahanadi in the east Godavari and Krishna in the middle Kaveri in the South, all these rivers ends in coastal regions have high potential to make water tourism possible and viable.   

What are the challenges?

• In India, the use of rivers for freight transportation is very under-utilized.
• Inland waterway network has no continuous connectivity which need man made interconnectivity like canals that increases the initial investment high. 
• Investment will increase with the construction of several ports, terminals, riverfront jetties, godowns, boat building workshops, repair yards, and but the related businesses will spur. 
• Some of these rivers are only navigable during certain times of the year because they are seasonal.
• Local peoples are opposing some of the projects as they use river water for irrigation, drinking, generation of electricity etc

Inland Waterway Project

• Kalasa Banduri project
  • The project involves diverting water from Mahadayi river, the lifeline of Goa, into the Malaprabha river.
  • The Kalasa Banduri project is aimed at providing drinking water to three important districts of north Karnataka — Belagavi, Gadag and Dharwad — which go parched in summer due to acute water scarcity.
• Haldia Multi-Modal Terminal in West Bengal
  • Developed under Jal Marg Vikas Project, Haldia Multi-Modal Terminal has a cargo handling capacity of around over 3 Million Metric Tonne Per Annum (MMTPA).
  • The berths are designed to handle vessels up to around 3000 Deadweight tonnage (DWT).
• National Waterways
  • National Waterways 1 : Prayagraj–Haldia stretch of the Ganges–Bhagirathi–Hooghly river system.
  • National Waterways 2 : Sadiya — Dhubri stretch of Brahmaputra river
  • National Waterways 3 : Kozhikode-Kollam stretch of the West Coast Canal, Champakara Canal and Udyogmandal Canal.
  • National Waterways 4 : Kakinada–Pudhucherry stretch of canals and the Kaluvelly Tank, Bhadrachalam – Rajahmundry stretch of River Godavari and Wazirabad – Vijayawada stretch of River Krishna
  • National Waterways 5 : Talcher–Dhamra stretch of the Brahmani River, the Geonkhali – Charbatia stretch of the East Coast Canal, the Charbatia–Dhamra stretch of Matai river and the Mangalgadi – Paradip stretch of the Mahanadi River Delta
  • National Waterways 6 : NW-6 is a waterway between Lakhipur and Bhanga of the Barak River.

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