Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is leaving for Sagar Islands on Monday to take stock of the arrangements of Gangasagar Mela. Banerjee will hold an administrative meeting at Kakdwip during the day and is expected to take part in a distribution programme at Patharpratima College Grounds on Tuesday.
She will also be visiting the venue of the Mela and will offer puja at the Kapil Muni ashram in Gangasagar during her tour. Banerjee will be holding a high-level meeting with officials of all concerned departments involved in organising the fair on January 8 and will return to Kolkata later on that day.
The Gangasgar Mela is scheduled to start from January 10 and will continue till January 17.
"We have decked up the vicinity of Kapil Muni ashram and have created a park with sitting arrangements for the pilgrims. Trees have been planted bordering the park to add to the green cover. We are also developing facilities for light and sound show in a waterbody inside the park with financial assistance from the state Urban Development department. The Chief Minister is expected to inaugurate a slew of beautification projects in and around the ashram during her tour," said Bankim Hazra, chairman of Bakkhali Gangasagar Development Authority.
The district administration has taken a slew of measures to ensure a plastic-free fair this year. Public Health Engineering (PHE), which is the nodal department for the Gangasagar Mela, will be serving water in plastic pouches to the pilgrims.
After use, they will be taken to the recycle unit immediately for disposal. Paper cups and plates will be given to various shops and eateries as an alternative to plastic.
"We will have arrangements of cleaners as well as e-carts to ensure the best facilities of solid waste management during the Mela. There will be over 200 vats in and around the venue," a senior official of the district administration said.
The district administration is expecting a huge turnout in Gangasagar Mela 2020, with the Kumbh Mela not scheduled for next year.
This is the first time that the district administration has made arrangements of making the Ganga water used for offering puja at Kapil Muni ashram available directly at the doorstep of common people.
South 24-Parganas District Magistrate P Ulaganathan unveiled a website named www.gangasagar.in on Saturday, from where people can place online order for the holy water. The window is open till January 10.
The person will have to pay the courier charges only, which will depend on the distance. But it will never go beyond Rs 250. Apart from water, people can also order flowers used for puja and prasad on the same platform.