The Centre planned to promote cruise tourism linking Mumbai with prominent locations in the country besides South East Asia, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said today.

"We already sanctioned Rs 1,000 crore for a cruise terminal in Mumbai. Every year, we are receiving 80 cruise (liners). We expect that it would rise to 950 cruise liners in next five years," Gadkari, who handles the portfolios of road transport, highways, shipping and water resources, said.

Noting that cruise tourism was offering huge potential, he said, it can be a game changer particularly in creating employment.

"Forty nine per cent of the investment in tourism is going to create employment," he told reporters here.

Elaborating, he said the plan was to take cruise tourism from Mumbai-Chennai, Mumbai-Cochin, Mumbai-Andamans and Nicobar Islands, Mumbai-Singapore and Mumbai to South East Asian countries.

Gadkari said the ministry would soon start passenger ferry serivces between Kanyakumari to Rameswaram.

"Pon Radhakrishnan (minister of state for shipping) has been discussing it with me for two years. We will immediately start Kanyakumari-Rameswaram (passenger ferry). We are inviting private operators to come forward," he said.