At Durga Angan launch, CM Mamata Banerjee invokes goddess amid electoral roll revision row

KOLKATA: CM Mamata Banerjee laid the foundation stone for the construction of Durga Angan in New Town on Monday, invoking Bengal’s most popular religious icon, Ma Durga, for help in the fight against the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

“Decisions are being made about who will stay and who will have to leave. So many people are helpless. I will only pray to Ma Durga to restore humanity. More than 50 people have died in less than a month. This cannot be tolerated. Do people living in Bengal need to prove their nationality? And what is the link between nationality and voting rights? People speaking Bengali are labelled Bangladeshi. This is unbearable. We are being patient. But there is a limit. Everyone’s voting rights must be preserved,” Banerjee said without directly mentioning SIR.

Durga Angan, billed as “a permanent courtyard for the daily worship of the Mother Goddess”, is being built in New Town’s Action Area-I at an estimated cost of Rs 262 crore. Monday’s ceremony comes eight months after the inauguration of Digha’s Jagannath temple (which, incidentally, notched up a total footfall of 1 crore on Sunday).

Banerjee, while presiding over Monday’s ceremony, also rebutted BJP’s allegations of “appeasement politics”. “Many people blame me for appeasement politics. I do not engage in appeasement. I am a true secularist. I work according to true secular principles, meaning I respect all religions equally. I believe in the peaceful coexistence of all religions. We are followers of Ramakrishna Paramhansa Dev’s philosophy of being grounded, we believe in being Matir Manush,” she said.

Banerjee is also slated to inaugurate the Mahakal Temple in Siliguri in the second week of Jan. “I have selected the land, finalised the date and funds are ready. A meeting on the trust needs to be held, the architecture needs to be finalised,” she said, adding West Bengal Housing Infrastructure Development Corporation would spend on Durga Angan’s infrastructure along with the state govt.

“This Durga Angan will help cement the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation’s recognition of the Durga Puja as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Thousands of people will come here every day,” Banerjee said.

“The original site was only 12 acres. But we decided to shift it to a bigger area, spread over 17 acres, to ensure ample space for car parking, shops and zones for cultural performances and rituals. This will be the biggest Durga Angan in the world, big enough to host 1 lakh visitors every day,” she promised, adding that the project would have something for both locals and tourists: “Bengal’s culture and spirituality will come alive for locals. And, for the millions of tourists, it will represent Bengal’s traditions and the spirit of unity.”

“Bengal was second in terms of getting foreign tourists in 2025. We will be number one in 2026. The Durga Angan will boost local industries and tourism and generate employment when it grows into a religio-cultural hub,” Banerjee said, giving the example of how the Jagannath Mandir had given a massive boost to Digha’s economy.

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