Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has written to state Transport minister Snehasis Chakraborty congratulating him and his entire team for effective transport management during the recently concluded Gangasagar Mela.
“The sheer scale of Gangasagar Mela is awe-inspiring as devotees from across the country and the world embark on a journey of salvation to take a holy dip in the sacred waters and offer prayers at the Kapil Muni temple. The occasion assumes even further significance, as the sacred venue is not land-linked, requiring the transportation of millions of devotees across the challenging waters to Sagar Islands. Your meticulous planning, seamless coordination and meticulous exemplary teamwork facilitated the smooth and efficient execution of this massive event by the civil administration, volunteer forces and security personnel, “ Banerjee wrote in her congratulatory letter.
Banerjee has requested Chakraborty to convey her heartiest congratulations and sincere thanks to all the officials of his department, who worked tirelessly in making this ‘monumental event’ a ‘resounding success’. “We always work as per the Chief Minister’s instructions and guidance which helps us reach out our services smoothly to people of the entire state. We learn everyday from her how to serve the society and so she is an inspiration for us,“ Chakraborty said, adding that the congratulatory letter is a source of inspiration.
The Transport department had made arrangements for 1200 bus trips everyday from Kolkata to Kakdwip from the inaugural day (January 10) of the Mela till its end.
There were 7 barges each with a capacity of 2500 passengers. There were 90 launch services that included 25 vessels.
There were arrangements of air ambulance for immediate airlifting of pilgrims in case of extreme health emergency and water ambulance too.