“We are expecting a total turnout of over 15 lakhs,” said Panchayat and Public Health Engineering Minister Subrata Mukherjee.
About 150 km from Kolkata in South 24 Parganas district, this island is considered auspicious by the Hindus, who gather here at this time of the year to take a holy dip at the confluence of the Ganges and the Bay of Bengal and pray by offering coconut at the Kapil Muni temple.
The Ganga Sagar Mela is considered as the second largest assembly of people after the quadrennial Kumbha Mela (fair). The devout believe that a dip in the sacred water at this time washes off sins of a lifetime.
According to the local administration and organisers, this time around the turnout is relatively higher.
“The attendance is relatively higher this year as a lot of fairs that are otherwise arranged at this time of the year could not be properly organised amid the cash crisis.
“The administration has taken necessary measures to tackle the large crowd,” Mukherjee said.
“We have built 20,000 stationary toilets with proper markings at the Mela premises, 5,000 more than 2016 and arranged one volunteer for every 10 toilets to ensure the pilgrims use them properly,” he added.
