Delhi is set to receive its first recreational river cruise service on the Yamuna, with the facility scheduled to be inaugurated on November 10 at Sonia Vihar.
Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal will inaugurate the service in the presence of Lieutenant Governor Taranjit Singh Sandhu and Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta. The cruise route has been developed along the Sonia Vihar-Jagatpur stretch of the river to expand river-based tourism and provide residents and visitors with a new leisure option in the national capital.
Minister of State for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Shantanu Thakur and Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways Harsh Malhotra are also expected to attend the inauguration. Delhi ministers Parvesh Sahib Singh, who holds the Public Works Department and Irrigation and Flood Control portfolios, and Tourism Minister Kapil Mishra will be present as well.
The River Yamuna has been designated as National Waterway-110 under the National Waterways Act, 2016. The project is intended to use the waterway for recreational navigation and support the growth of river tourism in Delhi.
Trial runs of the cruise vessel were conducted successfully last month in the presence of senior officials from the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) and the Delhi Government.
The initiative is being led by IWAI under the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Government of India. It has been developed in collaboration with the Delhi Development Authority, Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation, Delhi Jal Board, and the Irrigation and Flood Control Department of the Government of Delhi.
Electric-powered cruise vessels will be used for the service. The project is expected to give Delhi residents and tourists a distinct experience, encourage greater public engagement with the Yamuna and demonstrate the scope of inland waterways for clean and sustainable mobility.
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