Bench reconstitutes panel with a retired HC judge as chairman to review the situation on Ganga Sagar Island
Calcutta High Court on Tuesday amended its Order regarding Ganga Sagar Mela And said that only people with COVID negative report in the last 72 hours will be allowed to visit Sagar Island.
A division bench of Chief Justice Prakash Srivastava and Justice KD Bhutia said, “Only those who test positive in the RTPCR report within 72 hours will be allowed to enter Sagar Island.”
The bench reconstituted the committee to review the situation on Ganga Sagar Island with a retired judge of this high court as its chairman. In its earlier order, the court had constituted a committee comprising Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari, a representative of the state and the chairman of the Human Rights Commission.
The state government submitted before the court that the committee “should not only be an independent one but should not have a political member”.
The High Court said that when it passed the order on January 7, it was not informed that the posts of the Chairman of the Human Rights Commission and the Secretary of the West Bengal Human Rights Commission were vacant.
“To avoid any misunderstanding in the minds of the applicants or the State, we consider it appropriate to reconstitute the Committee with a retired Judge of this High Court to review the situation on the spot at Ganga Sagar Island,” the bench said. ” ,
The court said that the Chief Secretary, Government of West Bengal, would be personally responsible for ensuring compliance of the above directions and the directions contained in the January 7 order.
state against the ban
While public health experts have expressed concern over holding the annual pilgrimage, the West Bengal government in an affidavit to the court on January 6 informed that Not in favor of ban on Gangasagar fair In view of the arrangements already made at this stage.
Lakhs of people from different parts of the country gather at Sagar Island in the Sundarbans, about 130 km from Kolkata, on the occasion of Makar Sankranti and take a dip at the Sangam where the river Ganges meets the sea. Hundreds of pilgrims have started coming to West Bengal to reach Sagar Island.
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