New Delhi: Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh and its neighbouring cities continued to witness massive traffic and resultant snarls as thousands of vehicles made their way to the city for the ongoing Maha Kumbh over the weekend. Since it started on January 13, the event has drawn over 50 crore devotees.
Traffic congestion was seen in areas such as Balsan, Bairhana, Sobtiabagh, and Darbhanga, with residents facing enormous delays in reaching their destination. The grim situation can be gauged from the fact that a journey which usually takes 15 minutes is now taking nearly three hours.
Roads clogged and congested
In the past 24 hours, the number of vehicles making their way to the Maha Kumbh from Madhya Pradesh’s Rewa, which borders Prayagraj, has also gone up substantially. Even though three major ‘Amrit Snans’ (holy dips) on the auspicious days of Makar Sankranti, Mauni Amavasya, and Basant Panchami are over, the roads remain heavily clogged and congested.
The heavy traffic continues a day after 18 people lost their lives in a stampede at New Delhi Railway Station, sparked by a sudden spike of passengers trying to board trains for the Maha Kumbh. Responding to the tragedy, railway stations across Uttar Pradesh and Bihar have been put on high alert.
It can be recalled that last week, a huge number of devotees heading to the Maha Kumbh were left stuck on highways due to massive traffic jams, that stretched hundreds of kilometers on routes to Prayagraj. Reports indicated that the line of halted vehicles extended up to 300 kilometers.
Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party (SP) supremo Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday requested the Uttar Pradesh government to extend the period of the Maha Kumbh, indicating the huge number of devotees still on the roads who want to attend it. Yadav pointed out that in the past, the Maha Kumbh and Kumbh Mela lasted 75 days, while this year’s schedule is shorter.
Maha Kumbh sees footfall exceed 50 crore
Over 50 crore devotees have till now taken a holy dip at the Sangam, the confluence point of the Ganga, Yamuna and mythical Saraswati rivers, during the ongoing Maha Kumbh.
In a statement on Friday after the 50-crore milestone, the Uttar Pradesh government said: “Nations like the United States, Russia, Indonesia, Brazil, Pakistan, and Bangladesh all have smaller populations than those who have immersed themselves in the sacred waters of Sanatan Dharma.”
Reacting to the milestone, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said the Maha Kumbh 2025 is a “living symbol of India’s spirituality, unity, equality, and harmony”.
