Cleaning of river Hindon banks starts ahead of Chhath puja

Ghaziabad: As the Diwali festivities come to a close, the authorities are now gearing up for the upcoming Chhath festival on November 20, when devotees will come

Ghaziabad: As the Diwali festivities come to a close, the authorities are now gearing up for the upcoming Chhath festival on November 20, when devotees will come to the banks of the river Hindon to offer prayers. Officials of the municipal corporation said that apart from initiating a cleaning drive, they are also expecting that Ganga water to the river will be released before the start of Chhath festivities.

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Annually, thousands of devotees come to offer prayers on the banks of river Hindon but this year, the administration is contemplating restricting the numbers of people who would be allowed to attend the festivities due to the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.

“This year the festivities will be restricted due to the pandemic, and we are trying that only one person per family would be allowed. For this, we have held meetings with the Purabiya Jan Kalyan Parishad and asked them to restrict the size of the gathering,” said Shailendra Kumar Singh, additional district magistrate (city).

“We have also spoken to the irrigation department officials as well and have asked them to arrange for water to be released into the river before the festival. It is likely that Ganga water will be released into the river before November 20,” he added.

“The corporation has started the cleaning drive and we are also telling our members to restrict the number of people who come to the river banks. There are no directions as yet, specifically, for the Chhath puja. So, people who are coming over for the puja will arrive as they please. However, there should be no last minute issuance of directions. In such a case, we will not be able to restrict the number of visitors or tell them to curtail rituals,” said Rakesh Tiwari, Purabiya Jan Kalyan Parishad.

He added that the association members have also asked officials to expedite the release of water to the river.

The corporation officials said that they have initiated a cleanliness drive and deployed several teams to ensure that the banks are cleaned before the festival.

“Our teams are deployed and they will ensure that people are restricted from throwing any puja material leftover from Diwali into the river. It is likely that the water will reach before the festival,” said MS Tanwar, municipal commissioner.