Chief minister Nitish Kumar points out gaps on the pontoon bridge at Mahendru Ghat on Monday. Picture by Ashok Sinha

Nitish Kumar visited different ghats on Monday, not just as chief minister but also as an engineer, to inspect their preparedness for the upcoming Chhath rituals.

The engineer in him disapproved of the condition of a pontoon bridge erected at Mahendru ghat. The chief minister holds a degree in electrical engineering from the Bihar College of Engineering, Patna (now NIT Patna).

He stressed on safety of devotees and directed the officials to make arrangements to avert any stampede. His concern is understandable, as a stampede at Patna’s Adalat Ghat had claimed at least 18 lives on Chhath last year.

Pontoon bridges have been erected at all ghats, including Collectorate and Mahendru, as the Ganga has moved a kilometre away by changing course. Devotees will use the ghats to reach the diara area.

The chief minister, rather the engineer in him, was particularly displeased with the arrangements at Mahendru ghat. Cracks and gaps apart, he found steel plates of the bridge going up and down at many places. A dissatisfied Nitish said: “No, this won’t do. These gaps and cracks are dangerous. It will lead to a stampede. These are weak points... I don’t want a single weak point this Chhath.” Pointing them out to road construction secretary Pratyaya Amrit, he said: “Do you know what a stampede is and how it takes place? It starts with one man falling, then another falls on him and the panic that sets in triggers the stampede.” A moment later, he said dismissively: “No, this is not acceptable. I want you to remove all the steel plates and put new ones. It should be flat, there should not be any gaps or cracks.”

Before coming to Mahendru ghat, Nitish visited over 70 different ghats that fall under Patna Municipal Corporation’s jurisdiction on a steamer. With him were water resources minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary, energy minister Bijendra Prasad Yadav and food and consumer protection minister Shyam Rajak. Nitish went up to Digha in the west and Gai Ghat in the east.

He told the road construction secretary: “Pratyayaji, I want you to personally look after this. There would be a huge rush and pressure on these bridges. You never know which step would bring it down. I know there is no monitoring of such bridges, so you better replace the steel.”

He also raised concern over the slush at the ghats and asked district magistrate (DM) N. Saravana Kumar to involve officials of the water resources department, Patna Municipal Corporation (PMC), urban development department and building construction department to make all possible arrangements at the ghats.

He laid stress on barricading the marshy area. “People should not be allowed to go there,” he told the Patna district magistrate. He as       ked authorities to ensure devotees are not inconvenienced while offering “arghya (obeisance)”.

PMC commissioner Kuldip Narayan, Patna DM N Saravana Kumar and Patna divisional commissioner ELSN Bala Prasad were asked to arrange for divers, identify dangerous ghats and provide proper lighting. Nitish inspected entry and exit points at Mahendru ghat. “I am particularly concerned about exit points. It should be broad and properly lighted,” he said.

To allay his fears, chief minister’s principal secretary Anjani Kumar Singh assured him: “Sir, there would be proper monitoring. We plan to number the bridges, say 1 and 2. The public address system would announce which bridge to use for entry and exit.”

Nitish asked ELSN Bala Prasad to hold a review meeting with all officials involved in Chhath preparation on Tuesday. The Patna divisional commissioner, too, will meet on Tuesday to review preparations at the micro level.