Indian cruise ship is first to host jewellery show on board

Mumbai Port Trust and the Ministry of Shipping have organised the first-ever jewellery exhibition on board a cruise vessel to promote cruise tourism in the country among the business and leisure fraternity.

The exhibition on board Karnika, a cruise vessel owned by Jalesh Cruises, will be on till January 9.

“This is the first-ever jewellery exhibition in the world that is being held on board a cruise,” Sanjay Bhatia, chairman, Mumbai Port Trust, said while inaugurating the exhibition.

“We are in an exciting phase of the travel and tourism industry and are confident that cruise tourism will play a vital role in the sector’s rapid growth,” he said.

The exhibition has a mix of modern and traditional jewellery from exhibitors and retailers from India, Bangladesh, Istanbul, Dubai and Kuwait. Some popular brand names on display are Malabar Gold and Diamonds group, Joyallukas Pvt. Ltd., Arabian Gold & Diamonds LLC and Damas Jewellery.

Karnika has been chartered for four days and will be cruising in the Arabian Sea, bringing the concept of business and pleasure under one roof.

Since the Indian government has identified cruise tourism as a thrust area, a number of steps have been taken by the Mumbai Port Trust to attract cruise ships and tourists to India. Ports are building world class cruise terminals and other associated infrastructure to make it easier for tourists to avail the service. The sector is also getting a boost from facilities like e-visa, e-landing cards and biometric exemption for passengers.

As a result, cruise calls at Mumbai have increased from 40 in 2017-18 to 106 in 2018-19. In this financial year cruise calls are projected to be 243, Mr. Bhatia said.

Courtesy: THEHINDU