Today formal approval has been given for a ferry service between Mumbai and Surat and operations are likely to start in November 2019, the Gujarat government said in a release.
The air-conditioned passenger ferry service having 20 rooms and with a capacity of 300 passengers, will operate between Hazira port in Surat and Bandra in Mumbai once a week to start with, and its frequency will be increased depending on public response, it added.
The service will begin from November 2019, with the ship initially operating once a week. Its frequency will be increased in the future based on the passenger traffic.
Initially, the cruise ship will start from Bandra at 7 pm Thursday, and will arrive at Hazira port at 9 am on the next day. Its return journey will begin at 6 pm Friday from Hazira, reaching Bandra at 8 pm Saturday.
In another development, the release said the state will get a Rs 45 crore early warning dissemination system for early information on cyclones along its 1,600-km coastline.
The system will be built by the Gujarat State Disaster Management Authority under National Cyclone Risk Mitigation Project, a joint undertaking of National Disaster Management Authority and World Bank, the government said.
The state has provided Rs 20 crores its operation and maintenance for the first five years, it said.
