Sagar Island

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Sagar Island lies on the continental shelf of Bay of Bengal about 150&nbsp;km (80 nautical miles) south of Kolkata. It belongs to the Republic of India and is governed by the State government of West Bengal. The island is large — with an area of around 300&nbsp;km². It has 43 villages and a population of over 160,000.

The island is home to the endangered Royal Bengal Tiger. It is also rich in mangrove swamps, waterways and small rivers.This island is a famous Hindu pilgrim place. Every year on the day of Makar Sankranti (mid of January), thousands of Hindus gathered to take a holy dip in the confluence of Ganga and offered puja in Kapil Muni Temple.

Kolkata Port Trust has a pilot station and a light house.

Pilgrimage centre

Gangasagar pilgrimage and fair is the second largest congregation of mankind after the holy Kumbha Mela. The latter is observed once in four years at alternate locations in north, central and central-west parts of the country, Gangasagar fair and pilgrimage is held annually on the Sagar Island’s southern tip in the Ganges delta atop the Bay of Bengal. That makes Gangasagar all the more distinctive.

In 2007, about 300,000 pilgrims took the holy dip where the Hooghly meets the Bay of Bengal on the occasion of Makar Sankranti. The figure was lower by around 200,000 because of...
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