Ahead of Gangasagar Mela, state plans spar structure to tackle sea erosion

Kolkata: The Irrigation and Waterways (I&W) department is likely to adopt a nature-based solution known as spar to check erosion at beach number 2 on Sagar Islands, the stretch that leads directly to the Kapil Muni Ashram.

Since the onset of this year’s monsoon, the sea has risen abnormally on several occasions, breaching embankments. Erosion at ghat number 2 has emerged as a major concern with a little over three months left for the Gangasagar Mela in January 2026.

The idea behind spar is to reduce the intensity of waves before they strike the shore, much like a speed breaker slows down vehicles. The method was used last year at ghats 5 and 6, where results were encouraging.

“I have spoken with Additional Chief Secretary of the I&W department Manish Jain and told him that road number 2 must be saved from damage by the advancing sea to ensure smooth conduct of the Gangasagar Mela. At present, the sea is about 400 metre from the Kapil Muni Temple. The department has decided to adopt spar to check erosion here, though we are not sure whether it will be a permanent solution,” said Bankim Chandra Hazra, minister in-charge of the Sunderban Affairs department. Explaining the process, an I&W official said spar involves setting up a bulla—a wooden pile structure using eucalyptus stems driven deep into the ground—filled with broken tree parts to strengthen it. The bulla line runs parallel to the coastline, and when waves strike it, their kinetic energy is dissipated, preventing them from hitting the shore with full force.

The water trapped between the bulla and the coastline also deposits silt, gradually leading to foreshore formation and reducing erosion.

Ahead of the 2024 Gangasagar Mela, the I&W department had installed wave-dissipating concrete blocks known as tetrapods along a 400-metre stretch near ghat number 2. While tetrapods worked effectively at Tapoban and Bankimnagar beaches, they proved ineffective near the Kapil Muni temple, where the sea has continued to advance.