New Delhi . Chief Minister Rekha Gupta said that this time in Delhi, Chhath Mahaparva will be celebrated in a grand and well-organized manner. Chief Minister Rekha Gupta today made big announcements regarding the preparations for Chhath.
He said during the press conference that this time the government has lifted the ban related to organizing Chhath Puja on Yamuna river and clean, safe and modern Chhath ghats are being prepared in the capital. The Chief Minister said that the government is building 17 model Chhath Ghats on the banks of river Yamuna. Every facility will be available for Chhath fasting people at these ghats. Complete arrangements for tents, electricity, toilets, drinking water and cleanliness will be made. Apart from this, at least one model Chhath Ghat is being prepared in all the districts and upazilas of Delhi so that the devotees do not face any inconvenience.
Rekha Gupta said, “Previous governments had banned celebrating Chhath Puja on the Yamuna, but our government has lifted this ban while respecting this tradition. This time the government itself is taking over the responsibility of organizing the event and Chhath will be celebrated in a grand manner across Delhi.” He told that this time there has been a huge increase in the number of Chhath Puja places. Last year, Chhath was celebrated at 929 places in Delhi, but this time so far applications have been received from more than 1,000 committees. The Chief Minister said that the government will ensure complete arrangements at all the new ghats where events will be organised.
CM Rekha Gupta said that this time the government will organize more than 200 cultural programs. In these programs, cultural presentations will be given in Bhojpuri and Maithili languages so that the religious and cultural atmosphere of the festival becomes even grander. He said, “This is the first time that the government is going to organize such a large number of cultural programs related to Chhath.” The Chief Minister said that a special cleanliness campaign has been started from today so that devotees can offer Arghya in clean water during the Chhath festival. In this campaign, MPs, MLAs and councilors will themselves visit the ghats of their respective areas and monitor the cleaning work. “The government is making every possible effort to ensure that devotees can worship in a clean and safe environment,” he said.
Rekha Gupta said in the press conference that in the year 2021, an FIR was registered under section 188 of the IPC against those celebrating Chhath on Yamuna, but now her government will withdraw all those cases. He said, “Whatever FIRs or cases were registered by previous governments against those celebrating Chhath at Yamuna Ghat, our government will withdraw them.” Speaking on Delhi’s air quality, CM Rekha Gupta said that the government is taking every possible step so that Delhi’s air can be cleaned. He told that the air quality index of the next day of Diwali is now better than before. This time the level of pollution has reduced compared to previous governments. Despite firecrackers being allowed, improvement in AQI has been observed.