(a) whether travel by sea route is decreasing day by day;
(b) if so, the comparative percentage of fall during the last ten years; and
(c) the steps taken by the Government to promote international travel by sea route?
(a) whether travel by sea route is decreasing day by day;
(b) if so, the comparative percentage of fall during the last ten years; and
(c) the steps taken by the Government to promote international travel by sea route?
MINISTER FOR OCEAN DEVELOPMENT
(DR. MURLI MANOHAR JOSHI)
(a) Yes, sir,
(b) & (c) the demand for point to point passenger sea traffic on international routes has become non-existent as air travels offer increased level of convenience at competitive pricing.
The passenger traffic by sea route between Mainland and Andaman islands and Mainland and Lakshadweep islands still continues to be at a reasonable level since the fares on these routes are highly subsidesed by the Govt. of India basically for the islanders to travel between the islands and the mainlad since these ships are the lifeline for the islands.