Ganga aarti in Kolkata: Varanasi Way?

Is Mamata Banerjee now attempting to dispel the BJP’s charge of appeasing minorities? She recently directed the Kolkata Municipal Corporation to hold regular evening prayers, known as ‘Ganga Aarti,’ on the banks of the Hooghly River, a tributary of the Ganges. There are also plans to install a sculpture of Goddess Ganga on the bank. The sculpture will be worshipped every day in the evening, followed by worshipping the river with a lamp. The TMC told the opposition, who raised the issue, that Mamata is now following in the footsteps of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has made a grand celebration of Ganga Aarti every day. They said the actual idea was to promote awareness among the people about the river, which is the lifeline of the civilisation, adding that it is not religious as it has been in Haridwar and Varanas.