As groups of pilgrims start arriving at Sagar Island for a holy dip at the confluence of the river Ganga and the Bay of Bengal, the West Bengal government is leaving no stone unturned to describe the gathering as the biggest religious event in the country.
On Saturday, four State government Ministers held a press conference at the mela venue and announced that by noon on Saturday — almost 36 hours before the auspicious timing of the holy bath — about 45 lakh devotees had come to the island. According to the government, almost one crore pilgrims visited Ganga Sagar Mela in 2023.
“The timing of holy dip is from 12.13 in the night of January 14 to 12.13 in the afternoon of January 15... By the afternoon of January 13, about 45 lakh people had arrived at Gangasagar island,” State’s Minister for Sports and Youth Affairs, Power and Housing Arup Biswas told journalists.
Asked how the State government was calculating these figures, the Minister said that it was based on the capacity of barges and vessels and other modes of transport ferrying passengers. Mr. Biswas said that the mela started on January 8 and will conclude on January 17. The population of Sagar Island, spread over an area of 282.11 sq.km, is about 2.12 lakh as per last census in 2011.
The Minister also said that the estimated budget for the Ganga Sagar Mela for the year 2024 has been pegged at ₹250 crore. In 2023, it had been ₹150 crore. “No government in the country has been able to provide such facilities to pilgrims as we provide in Ganga Sagar. The Centre does not pay a single dime and we demand that without any further delay the mela should be declared a national fair,” Mr. Biswas said.
Sovandeb Chattopadhay, Minister of Agriculture and one of the senior Ministers in the West Bengal government, said that he had visited the Kumbh Mela thrice. “I have not seen such an organised mela and no mela in the country has so much footfall,” he said, referring to Ganga Sagar Mela.
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Elaborate arrangements
As many as 14,000 policemen have been assigned on security duty for the mela. For the convenience of pilgrims, 2,500 buses, six barges and 38 vessels have been made available. All modes of transport have been fitted with GPS.
On Thursday (January 11), Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeking the status of ‘national mela’ for the Ganga Sagar festivities. In her letter, Ms. Banerjee described the uniqueness of the gathering, calling it a ‘‘milestone of faith to followers of Hinduism” and something with “deep mythological and astrological significances”. Organised on an island, Ganga Sagar Mela is the only one of its kind in the entire world, she had noted.
“Hence, considering the uniqueness, significance, magnitude and spiritual depth associated with the Ganga Sagar Mela, I would earnestly appeal to you to kindly consider to declare Ganga Sagar Mela a national National Fair and to kindly take some time out to make a visit to Ganga Sagar,” Ms. Banerjee had said in the letter.
Statistical jugglery claims BJP
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leadership, however, described the claims of the Trinamool Congress government regarding number of visitors/pilgrims as a “statistical jugglery” and “completely misleading”.
“The Trinamool Congress government engages in statistical jugglery with every claim...Moreover, there should not be any comparison between the Kumbh Mela and Ganga Sagar Mela. We consider that Ganga Sagar is an auspicious pilgrimage but the West Bengal government is making it a subject of comparison which is very unfortunate,” BJP spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya said.
12 arrested for attack on Sadhus
In a related development, the West Bengal police arrested 12 persons in connection with the attack on Sadhus on the way to Ganga Sagar in Purulia. Videos of Shadhus being assaulted had gone viral on social media.
According to the police, there was some misunderstanding over luggage between three Sadhus headed to the mela and three girls near Kashipur on Thursday. Upon seeing the altercation, local residents reportedly manhandled the Sadhus and damaged their vehicles, alleging a kidnapping attempt, a post by Purulia Police on X said.
The police also added that there was “no communal overtone whatsoever regarding [the] incident” and threatened action against those “trying to fuel communal passions”.
