According to Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, the government plans to create green vessels and invest Rs 60,000 crore in river cruise tourism by 2047. He made this statement on the fringes of the inaugural Inland Waterways Development Council meeting. The plan is to invest Rs. 45,000 crores on river cruises, increasing the capacity from 2 lakh to 15 lakh passengers by 2047.
According to Sonowal, the government wants to create 1,000 ships and ferries by investing Rs 15,000 crore in green transport over the course of the next ten years. By 2047, a total of Rs 60,000 crore would have been invested, using the public-private partnership, or PPP, model. The Minister of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways stated that the assignments will contribute to the creation of thousands of employment. At the council meeting, which was attended by representatives of almost 20 states and Union territories, the River Cruise Tourism Roadmap of 2047 and the Harit Nauka requirements for inland vessel green transitions were released.
On a cruise ship, Sonowal oversaw a full day of meetings aimed at streamlining and advancing the development of waterways involving both state and federal entities. The sessions addressed a variety of subjects, including the involvement of the private sector, fairway development, best practices, improving the efficiency of cargo transport in inland water transportation (also known as IWT), encouraging the development of environmentally friendly guest transportation vessels and their promotion, and investigating the financial advantages of river cruise tourism.