In an effort to promote cruise tourism in the country, the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways planned ‘Cruise India Mission’. Launching the campaign at a function organised by Mumbai Port Authority (MbPA) on Monday, the Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal said the objective is to boost the country's cruise tourism industry by doubling the number of cruise passengers by 2029.
Starting the campaign from the cruise named 'Empress', Sonowal said, “The initiative aims to further India's ambition to become a global hub for cruise tourism and position the country as a leading global cruise destination. The campaign will be implemented in three phases starting October 1, 2024. In the first phase from October 1, 2024 to September 30, 2025, it will focus on conducting studies, master planning and creating cruise alliances with neighbouring countries. Modernization of existing cruise terminals, marinas and destinations will also be done in this phase to increase the capacity of cruise circuits.”
“In the phase 2 from October 1, 2025 to March 31, 2027, the campaign will focus on developing new cruise terminals, roundabouts and destinations to operate high capacity cruise locations and circuits. While in Phase 3 from April 1, 2027 to March 31, 2029, it will focus on consolidating all cruise circuits in the Indian subcontinent,” the minister said.
Besides, the campaign will focus on developing the ecosystem while continuing to develop terminals, hubs and destinations. Key performance targets for the phases include increasing the number of sea cruise passengers from 0.5 million in phase 1 to 1 million by phase 3 besides increasing the number of sea cruise calls from 125 to 500. River cruise passenger numbers are also set to increase from 0.5 million in Phase 1 to 1.5 million in Phase 3. Similarly, the number of international cruise terminals in Phase 1 will expand from 2 to 10 in Phase 3, while the number of river cruise terminals will reach 100 from 50. Likewise, the number of marinas will increase from 1 to 5 and employment generation will increase from 0.1 million to 0.4 million at the final stage.
Stating that this mission is an important step in the restructuring of the cruise sector in the country, Sonowal said that India's blue economy has immense potential and the government is committed to explore that. “Cruise tourism has a huge scope in our country, but the sector has remained neglected for a long time. But this visionary mission will bring change in our marine tourism by harnessing the potential of the country's vast coastline and waterways. Based on the key pillars of infrastructure development, the three-phase drive will develop world-class infrastructure and foster the growth of shipping and maritime trade,” he said and added that it will promote cultural, historical and natural tourism destinations of the Indian subcontinent, ensuring inclusive and equitable development for all stakeholders including ports, cruise lines, ship operators, tour operators, service providers and local communities.
"Various measures taken by the government have resulted in a remarkable increase of 400 percent in the number of cruise passengers since 2014. The 'Cruise India Mission' has set a target of further doubling the number of cruises. The aim is to take the number of cruise calls to 254 in 2030, 500 by 2047 and 1,100 by 2047. We expect the number of cruise passengers to increase from 4.6 lakh in 2024 to 50 lakh by 2047,” Sonowal added.
Speaking on the occasion, Union Minister of State for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Shantanu Thakur said this mission reflects the government's commitment to make India a global hub in cruise tourism. “It will be beneficial for drivers, tourists and communities and will empower India's maritime sector which will create new opportunities in the tourism sector and harness the indigo economy," he added.
