GUWAHATI, Oct 15 - Although the State government had earlier announced that the main organiser of the Brahmaputra Pushkaram Festival would be Balaji Temple, Guwahati and Mahalakshmi Trust and they would be assisted by the Assam Tourism Development Corporation (ATDC), it has now been learnt that during the days of the festival, the whole machinery of the administration will be engaged in different responsibilities.
During a meeting of all line departments held recently at the office of the Kamrup (Metro) DC, it was decided that the Department of Tourism, Assam will be the nodal department and the Director of Tourism will act as the nodal officer for the festival.
During the festival to be held from November 5 to 16 on the bank of the Brahmaputra at Bharalumukh, the State government expects about two lakh devotees from different parts of the country and among them 15,000-20,000 will take the holy dip in the Brahmaputra from 10 am to noon every day.
As part of preparation for the festival, the district administration has directed the PWD (Buildings) to set up barricades, changing rooms, toilets, etc., at the place of the holy dip.
The PWD (Buildings) has been further asked to set up barricades in consultation with the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the Inland Water Transport (IWT) Department with the aim to cater to 10,000-15,000 devotees per day. There will be separate entrances for VIPs and general public.
The festival will be held at two venues. At one venue, rituals will be performed and at another venue, cultural programmes will be held.
At both the venues, the PHED has to ensure adequate numbers of bio-toilets, drinking water and other sanitation facilities. Again, the APDCL will provide uninterrupted power supply and other related requirements at both the venues.
The GMC will provide sufficient drinking water and will ensure cleanliness and ample streetlights.
