Boat operations begin in Varanasi
VARANASI: Shambhu Sahni, a local boatman, was very happy on Tuesday as he put his boat on sail in Ganga after three months. Moreover, it was also a prized opportunity for him to have the district magistrate Kaushal Raj Sharma as his first customer of the day.
Like Shambhu the other boatmen were also happy, as the district administration allowed them to operate their boats in the Ganga. The boat operation was completely stopped after the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic.
The district administration has allowed boating to those boatmen, who have got registered with a prescribed web link provided by the municipal corporation. The DM made it clear that only those boatmen, who have given their details on the web link activated by the Varanasi Municipal Corporation, are allowed to operate their boats.
Boat operations begin in Varanasi
Under smart city project the VMC has activated a portal (https://varanasismartcity.gov.in/#/e-services/boating) to collect details of the boatmen operating their boats in Ganga in Varanasi. The boatmen have to give details like name, size and capacity of boats, operating mode, and other details. Since the earning of boatmen was completely stopped during the lockdown, the registration fee would be charged after the monsoon period.
There are about 4000 families of boatmen in Varanasi, said Pradeep Sahani, the president of Varanasi Nishad Raj Kalyan Samiti, adding that they faced acute hardship during the lockdown.
