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River tourism to attract devotees visiting Ram Mandir in Ayodhya
Two hybrid electric catamaran boats will operate for tourists from two jetties from Guptar Ghat and Naya Ghat
Before Ram Mandir is opened for devotees in Ayodhya in January next year, two jetties on river Saryu will be made operational to promote tourism in temple town.
These jetties will be for recreational purposes for tourists visiting temple town.
A jetty is a structure that projects from land into water where ships are docked for passengers to get on and off the ship. It is also used for loading and unloading cargoes.
The two jetties will operate from Guptar Ghat and Naya Ghat from where two hybrid electric catamaran boats will operate for tourists.
Ayodhya will be the second city in the state after Varanasi where jetties will come up to attract river -tourism.
Gaurav Dayal, divisional commissioner of Ayodhya, said that two boats will reach Ayodhya by the end of December this year.
Recently, Sanjay Bandopadhyay, chairman of the Indian Inland Waterways Authority, had visited Ayodhya to discuss the project with the Ayodhya administration.
According to Dayal, dredging in river Saryu has also been planned where the river bed is shallow. Over the years sedimentation has taken place near ghats.
The Ayodhya administration has planned to make river -tourism in river Saryu memorable for tourists.
The 15-km long journey between the two ghats, Guptar ghat and Naya ghat, will be scenic.
“Footfall of tourists in Ayodhya is expected to increase manifold after Ram Mandir is opened for devotees in January next. The cruise on river Saryu will be an added feature in Ayodhya for visitors to stay back in temple town for two -three days,” said an official of the Ayodhya administration.
At present, on an average 15,000 devotees are visiting Ram Mandir in Ayodhya every day. This figure goes up substantially on festive occasions.
The Ayodhya administration has also approved ‘Ayodhya Haat’ at Chaudhary Charan Singh ghat as another attraction for visitors.
