A high tide during the full moon on Sunday swept away the concrete path near Kapil Muni’s temple in Sagar Island. Several temporary shops were also damaged and a significant landslide occurred on the beach. Heavy rains in South 24-Parganas for the past few days had been battering the island.
From beach II to beach III, directly opposite to Kapil Muni temple in Gangasagar, the condition is precarious. Numerous natural disasters have eroded this area multiple times. As a result, the distance from the temple to the beach has now been reduced to approximately 450 metres. According to sources from the South 24-Parganas district administration, the state government has been planning for almost five years to prevent erosion.
In 2023, before the Gangasagar Mela started, the irrigation department had carried out a tetrapod-based project in front of the temple at a cost of about Rs 16 crore to prevent erosion. However, the sea consumed it before the year ended. In 2024, before the Gangasagar Mela, another pilot project was undertaken by the irrigation department to prevent erosion near the temple premises, but it also failed. Due to the poor condition of bathing ghats 1 and 2 on the beach, pilgrims used ghats 3, 4 and 5. However, these are now under water. With a regular flow of pilgrims at the temple daily, where will they bathe? The ancient Kapil Muni temple was consumed by the sea many years ago. The sea is now approaching the new temple. Local residents express increasing concerns about the future of the temple. The administration had planted coconut trees, along a one-kilometre stretch from roads 1 to 5. Recently, due to erosion, these trees have also been swallowed by the sea.
According to administration sources, in 2019, the Gangasagar-Bakkhali Development Board and the state urban department jointly started working to prevent erosion in Gangasagar. Mackintosh Burn was asked to prepare a plan to prevent erosion. After consulting various agencies, the state approached IIT Chennai. The architects at IIT Chennai planned how to address the erosion problem in Gangasagar. The Kolkata Port Trust also assisted in the survey of the erosion-prone area. A report was prepared on how the underwater soil was being eroded. About Rs 141 crore were allocated for this project. It was decided that the state would provide Rs 67 crores, while the rest would be provided by the central government. The Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority was allocated the work for the project. However, the work has not yet started. Sundarbans development minister Bankim Hazra said, “The draft to prevent erosion is ready. But permission from the Coastal Regulation Zones (CRZ) from the central government is not being obtained. The central government is also unwilling to provide funds for this project. Hence, there are problems starting the work. Without the help of the central government, it is not possible for the state government to start this work alone with Rs 141 crores at this time.” A senior South 24-Parganas district official said, “The survey conducted by IIT Chennai is under review for quick implementation. A high-level committee will visit the area on 26 July to decide on measures to prevent erosion.”