In West Bengal, there was a common saying during the Left era: ‘Sab tirtha bar bar, Ganga Sagar ek bar’. This was the perception as it was tough to reach the pilgrimage site. Ganga Sagar now sees more than 30 lakh Hindus taking the dip during Makar Sankranti, as devotees offer puja at Kapil Muni ashram on the island. Covering the event since 2009, this journalist has been witness to the challenges and change.
To reach Ganga Sagar, devotees have to head to Kakdwip Lot 8, and then Buri Ganga river in a vessel to reach Kachuberia of Sagar island. The ashram is 30 km from the spot.
In 2009, the ferry ghats were in place, but were untidy and ill-maintained. Switch to 2024, as one reaches lot 8, the jetties give the feel of the fair. People wait in queues, with police presence for coordination.
As one boards the vessel, dredging is taking place in Buri Ganga. The vessel driver told News18: “Things have changed drastically. The jetties in lot 8 and on Ganga Sagar side of Kachuberia are well-maintained. The most important factor is presence of police and watch tower.”
The island side of Kachuberia now has a big gate with Ganga Sagar written on it, a development from 2009.
WB Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee visited Ganga Sagar to oversee the preparation of the mela. She said, “ More than 80 lakh people come here. The magnitude of this mela is huge, bigger than the Kumbh mela, but we don’t get any help from the Central government.”
Meenu Malhotra, who was visiting Sagar from UP, told News18: “We used to think if we could go to Ganga Sagar once, that would be enough. When I came here 20 years ago, there was no accommodation or transport and there was only one hotel in the entire island. Now, there are government tourist cottages and other accommodation facilities.”
One can take Toto or car to Kapil Muni ashram, which was not the case earlier.
Sources in administration say they will soon come up with dormitories for visitors.
While the Kapil Muni ashram has been lit up, the vicinity has proper roads, electricity, accommodation facility and water.
Speaking to News 18, DM South 24 Parganas Sumit Gupta said, “There has been drastic change in the past 10 to 12 years. At least 1,125 CCTV cameras have been installed with links to our mega control room, covering the stretch from Kolkata ghat to the island. Our officers will sit in this control room for 24×7 monitoring. We are also trying to make Ganga Sagar green. It’s a changed island now.”
PREP FOR FAIR: LISTED BY ADMINISTRATIVE SOURCES
Communication: 24×7 mobile and internet connectivity, 7 Wi-Fi Zones, Wi-Fi calling, free calling zones/ booths, high frequency manpacks (140 RT handsets), ham radio, satellite phones (10 sets), 11 large LED screens for dissemination of information, etc. will be in place for emergency communication. Existing infrastructure has been augmented for handling huge pilgrim rush during mela.
Transport: Around 2,500 buses will carry pilgrims to Ganga Sagar from railway station, airport and bus stands. Twenty-one jetties [permanent-10, temporary-11] will be operational. Six barges, 32 vessels and 100 wooden launches will be deployed at lot 8 and Namkhana for transportation of pilgrims. All vessels, launches and barges operating in the river between mainland and island will be fitted with advanced GPS device with an integrated software which will be monitored from the mega control room. ‘Sagar Bandhu’ will be present in all buses plying towards the island. Additional trains will be arranged from Howrah, Sealdah and Namkhana. Thirteen buffer zones and 10 parking zones will be prepared along NH-117 and MDR to regulate passenger vehicles. Speed restrictions at 40 km/hour will be imposed in all vehicles to prevent speeding. Combined single ticket system from Kolkata/Howrah to lot 8 to Kachuberia and back will be implemented for seamless travel to and from Ganga Sagar.
Mega Sagar Arti has been planned for all days of the mela. E-darshan, e-snan are among the facilities added.
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