West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday reiterated her demand to the Centre that the Gangasagar Mela should be given a national tag, and also upped up the ante against the central government for not sanctioning funds to develop infrastructure at the pilgrimage site.
The chief minister made the statements on the sidelines of an event to inaugurate three permanent helipads at Gangasagar, which may be used by tourists, pilgrims and to airlift people during emergencies.
“We have been requesting the Centre to give Gangasagar Mela a national tag. The Union government bears the entire expense of the Kumbh Mela in Uttar Pradesh. But we don’t get a single penny from the Centre for the Gangasagar Mela. The state government bears the entire cost of development,” Banerjee said.
She said declaring Gangasagar as a ‘national mela’ will open the doors for funds from the Centre.
“I had requested Union minister Nitin Gadkari multiple times for funds to build a bridge over River Muriganga. We would also request the NITI Aayog to look into this,” she added.
The CM that as her government didn’t get any favourable response from the Centre, the state is itself preparing a detailed project report for a bridge over the river (to connect Sagar Island with the mainland), at an estimated cost of around ₹10,000 crore.
{{/usCountry}}The CM that as her government didn’t get any favourable response from the Centre, the state is itself preparing a detailed project report for a bridge over the river (to connect Sagar Island with the mainland), at an estimated cost of around ₹10,000 crore.
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Unlike the Kumbh Mela, which is well connected with roads, trains and flights, one must cross the river to reach the Sagar Island at the southern tip of West Bengal.
The chief minister in an earlier interaction with media persons had said that around three million people are expected to attend the mela this year to take the holy dip at the confluence of River Ganga and the Bay of Bengal on the occasion of Makar Sankranti on January 15.
Gangasagar Mela is the second largest congregation of pilgrims in India after the Kumbh Mela,and will be held from January 8-17.
Banerjee also raised the Gangasagar matter during the meeting of the National Ganga Council in Kolkata on December 30, which was chaired virtually by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.