Ganga Mahasabha of Haridwar presented the President a picture album which comprises pictures of all the Presidents and VIP’s who have come to Har Ki Pauri in the past years. The President said that the album would be an item that would be kept in the Rashtrapati Bhawan museum.
“Aj mujhe pavitra ganga nagri Haridwar mein sthit Har Ki Pauri par alaukik ganga arati dekhney ka suavsar prapt hua,” he wrote.
Notably Ganga Sabha is celebrating its centenary year this year. Way back in 1916, a pact was signed between the then British government, some kings of the era and freedom fighter Madan Mohan Malaviya on how much water should flow through the dams and canals and the main stream of the Ganga specifically across the ghats of Haridwar so as to enable the Hindus taking dip in the holy river to continue to believe in its ‘purity’. The agreement said that 1,000 cusecs of water would flow unfettered across the ghats of the city at the foothills at all times.
