Union Home Minister and Union Home Affairs and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah virtually inaugurated ‘Akshar River Cruise’ floating restaurant at Sabarmati Riverfront in Ahmedabad on Sunday morning. While addressing the inaugural event virtually, Shah said he also wanted to dine with his family members on this cruise, further mentioning that he will dine with Ahmedabad residents on this cruise when he visits the city. The river cruise floating restaurant is a joint venture of Akshar Travels, Amdavad Municipal Corporation (AMC) and Sabarmati Riverfront Development Corporation.
It is a 162-capacity cruise, which will take the passengers on a one and half hour journey with a meal. This also has a sprinkler facility against fire, a lifeboat, life jackets, and other facilities for safety. Speaking on the occasion, Shah said he wanted to have a meal with his family on this cruise.
After the event, Shah is also scheduled to visit Uttar Pradesh’s Lucknow to attend an event marking the birth anniversary of Sonelal Patel, a veteran Kurmi leader and founder of the Apna Dal. According to an article by The Indian Express, the cruise vessel will take guests on a 90-minute long starting from the Sardar Bridge to Gandhi Bridge.
On the ride, guests can enjoy meals, different live shows, and music, after the person pays a fixed price of Rs 2,000.
The executive director of the Sabarmati River Front Development Corporation Limited (SRFDCL), I K Patel, earlier said, as quoted by The Indian Express, “The Sabarmati riverfront was always envisioned to be vibrant and active for the people of the city. The plan to have a floating restaurant like this has been there since 2014. But it is only now that the plan has materialised.”
The floating restaurant is 30-metre long in length and 10-metre wide. Patel said the cruise will also have lower and upper decks. In addition to these, the lower deck will have air conditioning while the upper deck will have an open sky view.