MV Ganga Vilas completes maiden 50-day river cruise, reaches Dibrugarh

The MV Ganga Vilas has completed its maiden 50-day river cruise with flying colours.

The MV Ganga Vilas reached Dibrugarh in Assam on Tuesday (February 28) after completing what has been touted as the world’s longest river cruise. It was flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi from Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh on January 13.

During its journey, the cruise crossed five states — Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, and Assam — covering 3,200 km across 27 river systems. It entered Assam on February 17 via Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Grand welcome

During their journey, the tourists on board visited 50 spots of interest, including Unesco world heritage sites, national parks, river ghats, and major cities such as Patna in Bihar, Sahibganj in Jharkhand, Kolkata in West Bengal, Dhaka in Bangladesh, and Guwahati in Assam.

Watch: World’s longest river cruise, MV Ganga Vilas; Here’s all you need to know

In Dibrugarh, the tourists were welcomed by Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal, Shripad Yesso Naik, Minister of State for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, and Rameshwar Teli, MoS Labour and Employment, Petroleum and Natural Gas.

According to an official statement, the luxury cruise has three decks and 18 suites with a capacity for 36 tourists. The maiden voyage had 32 tourists from Switzerland signing up for the entire journey, it added.

(With agency inputs)