Delhi CM Rekha Gupta launches ‘Namo Yamuna River Safari’ at Sonia Vihar

Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta on Tuesday launched the recreational cruise service on the Yamuna, pitching the project as the first step in a broader effort to transform the riverfront into a major cultural and tourist destination.Union minister of ports, shipping and waterways Sarbananda Sonowal and Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta and others at the launch of Yamuna river cruise service at Sonia Vihar in New Delhi on Nov. 10 (HT Photo/Sanchit Khanna)“The Yamuna safari will be an experience that will take people closer to the Yamuna… I congratulate the people of Delhi and assure them that Chhath will be celebrated with even greater grandeur than last year,” the chief minister said at the event.The service, dubbed the Namo Yamuna River Safari, will operate on the river’s northern stretch, between Sonia Vihar and a temple complex in Jagatpur. The electric vessel, which can carry 30 passengers, will complete a round trip in 35 to 45 minutes.Gupta said the government was working hard to address the national Capital’s legacy problems. “Delhi is progressing under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” she said.Delhi tourism minister Kapil Mishra echoed her, saying such an initiative would have been difficult to imagine in the past and crediting PM Modi’s leadership for making ambitious projects possible.“PM Modi can make the impossible possible. Earlier, people only witnessed politics of blame,” Mishra said, adding that more boats would be introduced for the safari. He also spoke about plans for a light-and-sound show based on the life of Lord Krishna.Delhi water minister Parvesh Sahib Singh said the Yamuna should be developed as a tourism destination while retaining its cultural and religious significance. Singh linked the Delhi initiative to high-profile infrastructure projects in other cities, such as the Sabarmati riverfront project in Ahmedabad and the upgraded ghats of Varanasi.“Just as Prime Minister Narendra Modi developed the riverfront in Varanasi and the Sabarmati riverfront in Ahmedabad, a similar riverfront will be developed here,” Singh said.He added that contracts to upgrade sewage treatment plants had finally been awarded, and that water quality would improve as the facilities come online.Round-trip tickets are priced at ₹500, with a basic entry fee of ₹50. Facilities developed along the river include food kiosks, a restaurant, a children’s zone and other amenities.