For thousands of Chhath devotees in Delhi, finding a well-equipped place to perform the festival’s rituals has long been a challenge. This year, they will have an 11-km stretch along the Munak Canal in north Delhi to gather and offer prayers, after BJP national president Nitin Nabin and Chief Minister Rekha Gupta inaugurated a major Chhath ghat on Thursday.
The facility, developed along both banks of the canal, the Delhi government is presenting as the country’s longest Chhath ghat. It is part of a wider redevelopment project estimated to cost Rs 115.29 crore, which also includes roads, bridges and beautification work along the canal. Union Minister of State Harsh Malhotra, ministers Parvesh Sahib Singh, Manjinder Singh Sirsa and Kapil Mishra, MP Praveen Khandelwal and several MLAs were present at the inauguration.
The project aims to transform a neglected stretch along the Munak Canal into a cleaner public space with facilities for religious and cultural events. Besides the ghat, the seven planned development works include service roads along both banks, bridges, road widening, and canal beautification. The government said it was developing steps, lighting arrangements, parks, and other amenities for devotees.
The facility is also expected to accommodate celebrations such as Durga Puja and Ganesh Puja, in addition to serving as a venue for public and cultural activities throughout the year. The government said it plans a six-lane bridge over the Munak Canal near Singalpur village to connect Shalimar Bagh with Pitampura. The existing single-lane bridge near Haiderpur village is being replaced with a double-lane bridge. This will improve road connectivity for residents of the area.
Addressing the gathering, Nabin said the project recognised the contribution and cultural identity of people from Bihar and the Purvanchal region who have helped build Delhi. He said the ghat would allow community members to observe Chhath with dignity and access better facilities.
Describing Chhath as a festival centred on purity, discipline and devotion, he said its rituals of offering prayers to the setting and rising Sun also reflected gratitude towards nature. The festival, he added, brought people together across social divisions.
The Chief Minister said the area around the canal had remained neglected for years and residents had been waiting for a properly equipped facility for Chhath rituals. She said her government made the project a priority. The Chief Minister said the Rs 115-crore project included developing the 11-km ghat along both sides of the canal, along with roads, bridges and other public amenities. She said this year’s Chhath celebrations in Delhi would be larger than last year’s and assured devotees that she would visit different ghats and participate in the rituals.
Taking a dig at the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), the chief minister said “Termites” have been eliminated from the city. “We have eliminated the termites from Delhi that were eating away at the city. Now pesticides are being sprayed across Delhi so that termites destroying and damaging Delhi will not be allowed to return,” she said in her address.
Malhotra described the project as an effort to combine infrastructure development with preserving Delhi’s cultural heritage. He said the ghat would serve residents beyond the festival and provide space for social and cultural activities.
Parvesh Sahib Singh, who oversees the Irrigation and Flood Control Department, said the facility was the longest Chhath ghat in Delhi and the first of its kind in the country to be developed along a canal.
He said the Purvanchal community’s contribution to the city made it important that devotees had proper facilities to observe the festival. Kapil Mishra said arrangements had been made at 1,400 Chhath ghats across Delhi this year. He also claimed that better facilities had been provided at ghats along the Yamuna.