Kolkata, July 5 -- The Bengal government has drawn up elaborate arrangements for this year's Shrabani Mela at Tarakeswar, including laying water-sprinkled jute carpets along the 35-km pilgrimage route from Seoraphuli to protect barefoot devotees from the scorching road surface.
The carpets, extending up to the Tarakeswar temple, are intended to cushion the feet of pilgrims carrying holy water from Nimai Tirtha Ghat.
The state cabinet reviewed the preparations on Thursday. Urban Development and Municipal Affairs Minister Agnimitra Paul said rest shelters, toilets and health kiosks staffed with doctors would be set up at regular intervals to treat pilgrims suffering from exhaustion and other heat-related ailments.
Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari has directed officials to ensure uninterrupted lighting along the route and at the ghats, besides deploying senior administrative officers to oversee traffic and crowd management during the mela.
The government will also illuminate key stretches with Chandernagore lighting. The Public Works Department, Urban Development and Municipal Affairs Department, and Information and Cultural Affairs Department are jointly cleaning and beautifying the ghats, creating resting facilities and organising cultural programmes for devotees.
Public transport, including buses, will also be decorated for the occasion, Paul said.
"There will be a mega control room and, as per the directions of Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, special arrangements will be made at Tarakeswar to treat pilgrims suffering from sores on their feet," said Santu Pan, BJP MLA from Tarakeswar.
Adhikari is scheduled to visit Tarakeswar on July 14, while the annual Jal Jatra will begin on July 18.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.