Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s parliamentary constituency Varanasi is expected to get the country’s first water taxi that runs on hydrogen fuel. This new hydrogen-powered water taxi service will be run on the ghats of Banaras.
According to sources, all the preparations for the hydrogen-powered water taxi service have been completed and the operations are expected to commence today (June 15). It is also worth mentioning that the country’s first river cruise was also flagged off from Banaras.
According to the officials, the new hydrogen-powered water taxi will commence its journey from Ramnagar Fort and reach Namo Ghat. The distance between the two places is approximately 11 kilometres and there are also 3 stoppages in between these two locations.
These three stoppages include Asi Ghat, Dashashwamedh Ghat and Raj Ghat. Furthermore, the government is also planning to introduce 4 more water taxis in the river Ganges after the flood season.
One of the main reasons to promote water taxis is to reduce the traffic on the roadways. To attract more tourists, the fare has been kept reasonable at a price of Rs 165 for the entire 11-kilometre journey between Ramnagar Fort and Namo Ghat.
It is also worth mentioning that the fare is fixed for the journey and does not change as per stops. This means the water taxi service may not be feasible for those looking to reach one of the three stoppages between Ramnagar Fort and Namo Ghat.
As mentioned, the hydrogen-powered water taxi service is a pilot project and the government is looking forward to expanding this service. In fact, the service route is expected to be extended till the entry gate of Kashi Vishwanath Dham.
Furthermore, the responsibility of the operation of the hydrogen-powered water taxi service has been entrusted to the Roadways Management. Moreover, the water taxi is said to have a seating capacity of 80 passengers at a time.
That being said, the country’s first river cruise travels up to Dibrugarh in Assam via Bangladesh. This takes the total cruise approximately 50 days. Furthermore, the government is also planning to introduce water taxis on the river Yamuna in popular tourist spots such as Agra and Mathura.
The launch of the hydrogen-powered water taxi service in Varanasi will help the government expand the hydrogen-power infrastructure in India. This will not only reduce pollution levels, but the adoption of hydrogen power will hugely benefit the government in the long term.
