NEW DELHI: Delhi Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena has given his nod to hold Chhath Puja at designated ghats on the Yamuna and urged Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to ensure clean ghats and water for devotees, sources in his office said on Wednesday.
Following my visit and instructions on Saturday last, Amphibious Excavators starts cleaning & dredging Bhalswa Lake.
I hope that the Chhath Devotees will experience a cleaner lake this time & the precious Water body will get restored & rejuvenated soon. pic.twitter.com/9JnaD8feBk
— LG Delhi (@LtGovDelhi) October 20, 2022
The sources said Saxena had also cautioned Kejriwal against “misleading and premature publicity” over the issue.
यमुना के घाटों पर पहले की तरह छठ पूजा मनायी जायेगी। सभी अधिकारियों को आदेश दिये गये हैं कि यमुना प्रदूषित ना हो, ये सुनिश्चित करने के लिए सभी प्रबंध किए जाएँगे।
— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) October 21, 2022
A tweet by Kejriwal a few days ago had caused confusion with many people assuming that the puja could be performed anywhere along the Yamuna, the sources said.
“The proposal to hold Chhath Puja approved by the Lieutenant Governor was specific to designated ghats on the Yamuna,” a source said.
Visited Bhalswa Lake today. Deeply disappointed by DJB- the designated agency in-charge, for its inexcusable failure in upkeep, restoration & maintenance of this invaluable City Asset.
Instructed DDA to immediately start cleaning the banks for Chhath Puja. pic.twitter.com/h3BBDR5bco— LG Delhi (@LtGovDelhi) October 15, 2022
Saxena has also directed the revenue and environment departments to ensure strict enforcement of the National Green Tribunal’s orders on Yamuna pollution.
The Delhi government’s revenue department is the nodal agency for Chhath arrangements. It is working in close coordination with other government departments and civic agencies to make Chhath a success.
Chhath will be celebrated on October 30 and 31. It involves offering ‘arghya’ to the Sun god by fasting women in knee-deep water. The festival is hugely popular among Purvanchalis — people belonging to Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh — living in Delhi.
Popular Purvanchali leader and BJP MP Manoj Tiwari, in a letter to the Lieutenant Governor in August, had urged Saxena to direct Delhi government officials to make adequate arrangements for Chhath Puja at ghats on the Yamuna.
The Delhi government has made preparations for Chhath Puja at 1,100 sites.
Source: Press Trust of India
