Vikas Bhagat, a businessman from UP who attended Maha Kumbh with his parents, is all praise for the well-organised congregation at Prayagraj. His views:
I have been awestruck by the planning and arrangements made by the authorities concerned at Maha Kumbh 2025. The level of competence on display by the state government and security agencies has set a new precedent in organising a huge religious congregation for professional organisers across the world. Be it traffic or transportation, food supplies, lodging-boarding or crowd & grievance management, every aspect of the festival was meticulously taken care of.
In addition, safety-security of the devotees as well as environment concerns related to the cleanliness of the holy rivers had been taken care of like a well-oiled machine. It will be no exaggeration to say that this Maha Kumbh will go into the annals of history as one of the most professionally organised assembly in the years to come.
My claims can be substantiated by the number of devotees who have taken a holy dip in the Sangam (confluence) till now. As per the official records, more than 80 million people have taken a holy dip till January 20th and the number is expected to touch over 40 crore by the end of the event.
There is assistance of all kind at every step whether you are on the ground or in the waters. I saw policemen describing and briefing to devotees on how to reach the Sangam Nose (the confluence tip of the Ganga, Yamuna and the mystical Saraswati) to hundreds of pilgrims at a go and with a smile on his face.
I even witnessed an elderly lady, who appeared to be from the southern part of India, hugging a policeman as a mark of gratitude for his help. The policeman had patiently waited for translators to come and answer her queries before addressing the problems. She had separated from her group and was promptly reunited, which left her emotional.
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Exceptional arrangements are in place for ferrying pilgrims and vehicular movements – both inside the Mela city and the Prayagraj district. On the holy days (of the snaan), one can easily reach the parking slots erected all around the city by taxi or personal vehicles and after parking the vehicles, one can move around in the city in the electric vehicles ferrying all around.
Though vehicles other than the registration number of Prayagraj are not allowed to enter on three days, arrangements are made on all the borders and entry points of the districts for smooth movement of pilgrims to the Mela city. The venue has been divided into sectors for easy management and the residential areas are provided with a lot of space around them to tackle emergency situations.
I was also witness to the fire incident that took place on January 19th; it happened in the kitchen of a residential tent. Although it engulfed about 100-odd tents as over 50 LPG cylinders exploded, the fire brigade and other security staff extinguished the fire in not more than an hour. Not even a single injury, let alone a life casualty, was reported.
This Mela has been once in a lifetime experience not only for one religious faith but for everyone who wishes to experience the spirituality and the sanctity which has filling the atmosphere of the holy place; the divine energy here is simply unmatched.
As told to Rajat Rai
