However, there was no untoward incident like drowning in the Ganga Sagar Mela, considered the biggest religious gathering after the Kumbh Mela.
millions of pilgrims but took his holy dip Ganga Sagar Here on Friday, January 14, 2021, on the occasion of Makar Sankranti, a section of them followed the COVID-19 safety protocols.
Many of them were seen roaming without masks and the government officials faced difficulty in enforcing the COVID-19 norms.
RT-PCR tests were conducted as part of measures to check the spread of the disease.
However, there was no untoward incident like drowning in the Ganga Sagar Mela, considered the biggest religious gathering after the Kumbh Mela.
“The number of pilgrims this year is much less than last year. It is around 20-25 per cent of last year’s crowd,” West Bengal Power Minister Arup Biswas said at a press conference here.
Sri Vishwas, however, refused to divulge the number of devotees who had visited the island this year and took a holy dip.
Around 15.5 lakh pilgrims reached Sagar Island during Makar Sankranti in January 2021.
A senior government official in South 24 Parganas district said that those who were fully vaccinated and tested negative for COVID-19 had to travel across the Ganges and Bay of Bengal to participate in the fair. Permission was granted to enter Sagar Island situated at the confluence.
An official statement said only one pilgrim was confirmed as COVID positive in the random test before entering the Mela Ground and he was sent to isolation.
At Babughat and adjoining areas in Kolkata, where pilgrims gather for their onward journey to Sagar Island, another 43 tested positive.
The holy bathing began at midnight and devotees from different parts of the country gathered at the Sangam facing the cold and incessant drizzle. He also offered prayers at Kapil Muni temple here.
The holy bath will continue till 12:30 pm on Saturday.
According to locals, physical distancing norms went for a toss despite disaster management and civil defense personnel, police and volunteers maintaining COVID protocols.
Many pilgrims were seen without masks, even as officials and volunteers continued to persuade them to follow social distancing norms and wear masks.
Devotees and sadhus show the fifth house after taking a bath.
A pilgrim standing in waist-deep water said, “When I took a dip in the Ganges, all my sins were washed away and the virus can never touch me.”
Some devotees were seen singing and dancing to thank the Lord for allowing them to enter the Ganges Sagar.
“there is a saying “Shob Teerth Bar R, Gangasagar Ekbari (You can visit other pilgrimages many times, but you can visit Gangasagar only once). The journey to Ganga Sagar is enough to make up for the hardships faced by the pilgrims visiting here. I feel energized after the dip. I am not afraid of COVID-19 or any other virus,” said another pilgrim.
So far more than five lakh pilgrims have taken the holy bath, an official said.
The district administration claimed that it controlled the proceedings at the fair to a great extent and most of the pilgrims followed the instructions.
“We did not allow anyone without RT-PCR report and double vaccination certificate this time. Screening was done at all the embarkation points including Babughat in Kolkata and Namkhana in South 24 Parganas,” said an official.
drop in cases
West Bengal on Friday reported 22,645 new COVID-19 cases – 822 less than the previous day – which took the tally to 18,63,697, the health department said in its bulletin.
Health experts were apprehensive that the congregation could become a super spreader at a time when the state government is battling to contain the spread of the highly contagious Omicron strain.
A doctor told a TV news channel, “When the Kumbh Mela was organized last year, we had seen how many people had tested positive after the event. We fear that the Gangasagar Mela could be a super spreader.”
On Thursday, the preparations for the fair were overseen by a two-member panel constituted by the Calcutta High Court to monitor adherence to the COVID-19 norms.
A committee comprising retired Justice Samasti Chattopadhyay and a member of the State Legal Services Authority had asked the district administration to stop overcrowding.
Biswas and state women and child development minister Shashi Panja are camping at the spot, coordinating with the district magistrate and other top government officials for the smooth running of the mela.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had on Wednesday urged the devotees to follow the COVID-19 protocol.
Every year, pilgrims from different parts of the country and abroad gather at Sagar Island, about 100 km from the city, to take a holy dip on Makar Sankranti.
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