KMC launches Ganga awareness drive
The Kolkata Municipal Corporation launched an awareness drive to keep the Ganges clean. Mayor Firhad Hakim today kicked off the Ganga Utsav drive urging citizens to keep the river clean.
For Chhath Puja, the Kolkata Municipal Corporation has made elaborate arrangements preparing over 200 ghats for the rituals tomorrow. The civic body has prepared 111 ghats in its area, while 42 are those of the Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA).
According to KMC mayor Firhad Hakim, 28 ghats have been created temporarily while 14 are located beside the Ganga. An additional number of four water bodies have also been set up to enable devotees perform their rituals nearby. The municipal corporation has also set up changing rooms for women.
As informed by Mr Hakim, around 100 bio-toilets have also been set up at the ghats while arrangements for proper lighting at ghats have been made.
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The road department has made provisions for performing dandi, an important ritual of the festival. According to the KMC mayor a special ghat has been set up for the devotees in the port area, who earlier had to come to Rabindra Sarobar Lake.
The Takta ghat, which had considerable depth, has been surrounded by the engineering department of the KMC. Stages have also been erected at places for the festival.
The Bengal Lamp ghat, where the local residents had complained last year, is to be cleaned after the festival by the KMC. “We will take initiatives to clean the water bodies in a month and bring them to their natural condition. The conservancy department would be engaged in cleaning up the waste. We would also see that the fish in the water bides are not damaged,” informed the mayor.
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