West Bengal: Security tightened, all arrangements in place as devotees gather for Gangasagar Mela

By Ujjwal Roy
South 24 Parganas (West Bengal) [India], January 14 : While all eyes are on Ayodhya as the city prepares to host a long line of dignitaries, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, ahead of the opening of the grand Ram Temple on January 22, a popular pilgrimage site in another part of the country has also decked up to receive devotees and pilgrims by their thousands.
On the eve of Makar Sankranti, the Sagar Islands in the South 24 Parganas district of Bengal had a festive air about it as it prepared to host the annual Gangasagar Mela, starting Saturday.
The second-largest fair after Kumbh Mela, the Gangasagar Mela starts on the pious day of Makar Sankranti, which generally falls between January 14 and 15 every year.
The annual fair at one of the oldest and leading prilgrimage sites in the country draws devotees every year, who also take a holy dip in the sacred waters of the Ganga at Sagardweep, from where the river merges with the Bay of Bengal.
In an exclusive chat with ANI on Friday, the district magistrate of South 24 Parganas, Sumit Gupta, spoke on the security arrangements for the devotees, who have fetched up in their thousands for the event.
"Preparations for this mega fair have been underway for the last five to six months. Many departments were involved in the preparations. A dedicated control room was opened in order to track of the movement of visitors, pilgrims and seers at the fair. All arrangements have been made to ensure public safety and also to make sure that there is no inconvenience to pilgrims and devotees. We are tracking the feed from 1,145 CCTVs installed at the fair ground from the mega control room here. Be it the devotees or travellers, all information is shared real-time with the police, crowd control team and other authorities," Gupta said.
"More than 14,000 police personnel have been deployed at the fair. Senior police officers are among the personnel deployed as part of the security arangements. Everything, from drop-gate arrangements to police assistant booths, has been provided for at various places for traffic management along the route -- from Kolkata to Lot 8, Kakdweep via Outram Ghat. The police are also keeping an eye on the traffic arrangements from Kochuberia to Sagar Islands. Many buffer zones have been created to ensure that the movement of buses remains smooth. As many as 12 to 14 jetties are functional. Lot 8 and Kachubariya Point have a total of six jetties. There are 38 vessels. Our PTMS Pilgrim traffic management system with a mega control room has been installed inside every vessel. All the buses ferrying visitors to the islands are GPS-enabled. We are the tracking the movement of these vehicles live through GPS," the DM added.
On the medical facilities and arrangements to mobilise immediate response in the event of a medical emergency, the DM said, "The fair was very successful last year and we are hoping for an encore this year. There should not be any kind of problem for the passengers and devotees. Ambulances, mobile healthcare units, equipped with ICU, have been put on standby at the fair ground. We have five temporary hospitals and more than 300 beds on the Sagar Islands. Beds have also been reserved in the leading hospitals of Kolkata. We have also arranged for one air ambulance, water ambulances, around 100 regular ambulances, 7 ALS ambulances, and advanced life-saving ambulances. They are all there. Yesterday, two people were airlifted and today, we have lifted three more. A total of five people have been airlifted so far. People hailing from different places are airlifted from here to the hospital in Kolkata through the green corridor, in the event of a medical emergency."
"This time, we have also installed 43 watch towers. Temporary fire stations have also been built at the fair ground. CCTV cameras, drones and an integrated control room have been set up. The State Secretariat at Nabanna is also taking regular updates on the preparations and fair. Complete monitoring is being done at the senior officer (IG), DG and Chief Secretary levels. A water ambulance and an air ambulance are available at the fairground for medical purposes. We have carried out a massive deployment of doctors and medical staff, police and volunteers for a smooth conduct of the fair. We have been able to manage all the visitors so far. Apart from the police, we have also ensured the deployment of civil defence personnel, navy and army. Safety and security are being paramount impirtance," the DM added.
Earlier, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee chaired a meeting to review the preparations for the Gangasagar Mela at Nabanna.
The meeting was attended by cabinet ministers and secretaries of different departments.
During the meeting, Mamata announced that a massive security cover would be thrown around the event and all necessary amenities would be provided for. The arrangements include a strict police vigil, 200 km of barricades, 1150 CCTV cameras, 20 drones, 2400 civil defence forces, and 50 fire engines. Additionally, each person visiting the fair are eligible for an accidental insurance coverage of Rs 5 lakh while 6,500 volunteers and 10,000 toilets would be arranged for the fair.
"There will be strict police vigil. Police barricades over 200 kilometres have been erected to control the crowd while 1150 CCTVs, 20 drones, 2400 civil defence forces, and 50 fire engines will be posted in the fair ground from January 9-17. There will be an accidental insurance cover of Rs 5 lakh for every person visiting the fair while 6,500 volunteers and 10,000 toilets will also be there," Mamata said.
The CM also directed the administration to keep a close watch to avoid any untoward incidents during the annual prilgrimage fair.
She also urged the broadcast media to make arrangements to telecast this aarti live. She added that the number of buses was also being increased for the convenience of pilgrims.