As the Maha Kumbh was set to conclude last week, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath brought up the Kumbh Mela held 12 years ago to target the Samajwadi Party (SP) whose president, Akhilesh Yadav was the CM at the time.
“What you (the Opposition) said regarding the Maha Kumbh, a person from a particular caste was stopped from entering. We said those who go with goodwill can go, but if somebody goes with malicious intent, they will be in trouble … We did not play with the religious sentiments of people, unlike the SP. Their CM did not have the time to monitor Kumbh and see its arrangements. Therefore, he (Akhilesh Yadav) made a non-Sanatani the in-charge of Kumbh,” Aditanath said on February 24, referring to then UP Minister Azam Khan of the SP.
Like in this Kumbh, a stampede occurred during the 2013 Mela too as lives were lost at the Prayagraj (then Allahabad) railway station. After the conclusion of the Mela, which was studied by a team from Harvard University, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) submitted a report.
The event was held across 1,936 hectares along the Sangam embankment. According to government figures, the 55-day event between January 14 and March 10 that year, attracted almost 12 crore devotees, with an estimated 3 crore arriving in Prayagraj on the auspicious Mauni Amavasya day. The government released Rs 1,152 crore for the event, according to government records.
The event also seemingly resulted in an infrastructure push, with 156.2 km of roads laid, 90 parking lots set up, and 18 pontoon bridges constructed over the Ganga. A total of 43,000 toilets were also built, of which 35,000 were individual toilets, 7,500 were trench toilets, and about 1,000 were composting toilets. Records show that 22,000 electricity poles were also erected to ensure power supply.
According to the records, 750 trains and 4,000 buses ferried pilgrims to and from Kumbh, while 30 police stations were established in Kumbh city.
A stampede and other controversies
Akhilesh did visit the Mela area to oversee preparation but sources said neither officials nor local SP workers were aware of his visit, which lasted for around two hours.