The Centre has drawn up a plan to develop a river-based tourism circuit on the Brahmaputra in partnership with the Assam government to connect 7 historic temples in the region. The project will involve an investment of Rs 45 to 50 crore.

This Sagarmala project will connect the seven historic temples namely Kamakhya, Pandunath, Ashwaklanta, Doul Govinda, Umananda, Chakreshwar and Auniati Satra situated in Guwahati. The circuit will sail from Hanuman Ghat, Uzan Bazar and will complete its journey by covering all the seven temples through waterways. The ferry service is expected to reduce the overall travel time to less than 2 hours for completing the full circuit.

A Memorandum of Understanding for ‘Riverine based tourism Circuit’ being developed over river Brahmaputra will be signed between Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), Sagarmala Development Company Limited (SDCL), Assam Tourism Development Corporation Limited (ATDC) and Directorate of Inland Water Transport (DIWT) Assam in Guwahati on May 19, 2023, according to an official statement released today.

The signing ceremony will take place in the presence of Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.

“The project is being developed under the Sagarmala Programme at an initial cost of Rs 40-45 crores. SDCL and IWAI will jointly contribute 55 percent of the project cost while the rest of the funding will be provided by ATDC. Assam’s inland waterways transport department has agreed to provide the use of Ghats near the temples free of cost for the project,” the ministry said.