Sagar Island
This article has been extracted from THE IMPERIAL GAZETTEER OF INDIA , 1908. OXFORD, AT THE CLARENDON PRESS. |
Note: National, provincial and district boundaries have changed considerably since 1908. Typically, old states, ‘divisions’ and districts have been broken into smaller units, and many tahsils upgraded to districts. Some units have since been renamed. Therefore, this article is being posted mainly for its historical value.
Sagar Island
Island at the mouth of the Hooghly river in the Twenty-four Parganas District of Bengal, lying between 21 36' and 21 56' N. and 88 2' and 88 n' E. The name means 'the sea,' and situated, as it is, at the point where the holy Ganges once mingled its waters with the Bay, the island is regarded as peculiarly sacred. It is the scene of a great annual bathing festival, where thousands of pilgrims congregate from all parts of India to wash away their sins A good deal of business takes place m articles from Calcutta, such as mats and stoneware. Much progress has been made of recent yeais in the reclamation of the island, the north part of which is now well cultivated , but the south is still dense jungle. The cyclone of 1864 caused enormous destruction and loss of life, and only 1,500 out of a population of 5,600 survived the catastrophe There is a lighthouse on the island
