Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari will launch Classic Imperial, said to be the first and biggest-of-its-kind tourist vessel to be built in Kerala, at Marine Drive here on Wednesday afternoon.
The 50-metre-long air-conditioned vessel that adheres to safety norms specified by the Indian Register of Shipping (IRS) and can carry up to 150 passengers will operate in the backwaters off Marine Drive. It will be among the handful of tourist vessels from Kochi that can operate well beyond Fort Kochi, a few kilometres into the sea, said Nishijit John, managing director of Neo Classic Cruises and Tours, which owns the vessel and has been operating another five tourist boats here. It was built over three years on land leased from the Cochin Port Authority at Vallarpadam.
The number of seagoing vessels that operate from Kochi has been increasing over the years, commensurate with the increase in the number of boat jetties at Marine Drive.
