West BengalLakhs of pilgrims took a holy dip in Gangasagar, the confluence of the Hooghly river and the Bay of Bengal, on the occasion of Makar Sankranti, a West Bengal minister said on Sunday. The auspicious time for taking the holy bath started at 6.53 pm on Saturday and continued till sunset on Sunday. Minister Arup Biswas said that over 51 lakh pilgrims from across the state and the country have visited Gangasagar in the last few days till 4 pm on Sunday, with 10 lakh more pilgrims going to Sagar Island.
He took a dip in the Sangam after offering prayers at Kapil Muni Ashram. A total of seven people, including two pilgrims from Uttar Pradesh, have died during the day due to heart attack at the fair, he said.
A total of 125 pilgrims are undergoing treatment at various hospitals in Sagar Island after falling ill for various reasons, while 25 others have been shifted to Kolkata for better treatment.
He said the movement of ships from the mainland to the island remained suspended from 8 pm on Saturday till 9 am on Sunday due to dense fog. Many of those who have completed the pilgrimage have started their journey home.
The Minister of State for Power and Sports said that more than 1 crore people have seen the fair virtually. A total of 7,780 people across the country have availed ‘e-Snan’ services, under which holy water from Gangasagar is delivered to their doorsteps on order.
A total of 35 people have been arrested so far by the police for various offenses during the fair held amid tight security. He said personnel from the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) and disaster management teams have stepped up vigil on the beach, while police and civil defense volunteers have been deployed at the fair grounds.
Over 1,000 CCTV cameras and 25 drones have been deployed to monitor the entire venue. The auspicious time for taking a holy dip on Makar Sankranti continued till sunset on Sunday, Jayant Kushari, founder of Sarva Bharatiya Praachya Vidya Akademi, a school of oriental studies, told PTI.