The solar is already setting behind the Ganga when Ram Asrey and Harish Chandra begin packing up their hammers and shovels. The 62- and 60-year-old have been at work since eight within the morning , serving to widen the roads from Prayagraj resulting in the Kumbh mela floor. Their limbs are sheathed in sweat beads regardless of the winter chill setting in.
For illustration solely (HT File Photograph)
“The Kumbh gives us livelihood for several months. We get ₹500 for eight hours of work. We are blessed to be part of this grand occasion, which witnesses a sea of people,” Asrey, a resident of Kaushambhi, mentioned.
They aren’t the one ones. Round them, no less than a thousand women and men are strolling again to the non permanent camp websites, the place they’ll relaxation earlier than returning to work afresh. A few of them who reside close by head to their properties. Many of the employees are from adjoining areas resembling Pratapgarh, Kaushambi and Phaphamau. The regular buzz of street rollers, excavators and cranes that had hire the air at Sangam Metropolis has immediately fallen silent.
“We have a job on our hands, and we are racing against a deadline. We must finish the task by the first week of next month. The shorter days and winter chill will only make things difficult,” 58-year-old Daya Ram, a employee from Phaphamau mentioned.
The silence doesn’t final lengthy. Round half-hour later, a contemporary military of employees descend upon the muddy expanse of land on the banks of the Ganga. They are going to work via the night time, levelling the ghat and portray the boundary wall, and solely put their instruments down when Ram Asrey and Harish Chandra return within the morning.
This has been their draining routine for 50 days – channelising the river, widening the street and levelling the ghat—however nobody is complaining. For them, that is holy work – constructing an abode for one of many holiest occasions in Hinduism, the duodecennial Maha Kumbh on the banks of the Ganga on the web site of Sangam in Prayagraj between January 13 and February 26.
“We are happy to be a part of the Maha Kumbh . Our hard work will make things better for millions of visiting devotees, sadhus and tourists,” Ram Naresh, one other employee mentioned.
However the scaffolding for the non secular devotion is an intimidating array of logistics and planning required to remodel a mossy stretch of land right into a sprawling metropolis that can cater to the roughly 400 million pilgrims who’re anticipated to take a dip within the Ganga – making the Maha Kumbh the most important non secular gathering on the planet.
The numbers inform the story of the size of the problem – 160,000 tents and 150,000 bogs to be serviced by 15,000 sanitation employees, 67,000 LED lights and a pair of,000 photo voltaic lights, and 300,000 vegetation to be put in. As well as, the authorities will construct 9 paved ghats, seven riverfront roads and 12km of non permanent ghats, seven bus stands, and fee artists to cowl streets and partitions with work and murals stretching throughout 1.5 million sq. toes space.
“Thousands of people have worked day and night to make the upcoming Maha Kumbh 2025 memorable for 400 million devotees who are expected to visit here between January 13 and February 26. The team has done an incredible job,” mentioned divisional commissioner, Prayagraj, Vijay Vishwas Pant.
However there was a vital problem – speedy erosion had eaten away the Ganga financial institution and compelled the river to veer away to the correct, decreasing the land obtainable to construct the Kumbh floor. Furthermore, the three,200 hectares of river financial institution on which the 2019 Kumbh was held had been taken over by the Ganga over 5 years. It needed to be reclaimed.
The authorities determined that they won’t solely reclaim the three,200 hectares allotted in 2019, but in addition add 800 hectares extra to make sure the size of the mega non secular occasion stays grand.
“The 4,000-hectare land will get transformed into a most frequented place in this part of the country in the next four weeks. Reclaiming such vast land for the Mahakumbh was not an easy task,” Pant mentioned.
The work started in October when consultants from the irrigation division together with the district administration began channelising the river in an effort to create extra ghats in an try to accommodate extra devotees.
“First of all, we worked on channelling the Ganga and dredging at the Sangam. This was done by the irrigation and water resources department in consultation with experts from the Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati. Due to erosion at the Sangam, land available along the banks decreased substantially as compared to 2019. Between 2019 and 2024, the Ganga shifted approximately 200 to 500 metres from its right bank, significantly reducing the land area,” mentioned Mela Adhikari(honest incharge) Vijay Kiran Anand.
With solely a couple of month left for the auspicious day of Makar Sankranti that can mark the primary Rajasi Snan, ADM Kumbh Vivek Chaturvedi mentioned “almost 90% work has been accomplished or near completion”. For the UP authorities, this can be a status venture that’s receiving as cautious consideration because the Ram Temple consecration ceremony earlier this yr.
“The job to reclaim more land to accommodate the exponentially huge footfall was a difficult one. Hard work paid off. In 2019, 24 crore people visited here. This time we are expecting nothing less than 40 crore as announced by chief minister Yogi Adityanath on December 9 during his visit to Mahakumbh mela ground,” mentioned Vivek Chaturvedi, further district Justice of the Peace, Mahakumbh.
The logistics problem is formidable too.
The 4,000 hectare land is to be divided into 25 sectors. For the graceful circulate of devotees from one finish to a different, a complete of 30 pontoon bridges are being made, eight greater than in 2019. The general public works division is tasked with renovating about 90 roads, out of which greater than 25 have been accomplished. A 1,250km pipeline community with over 50,000 water connections is being laid within the mela floor space that will likely be lit up by 67,000 LED lights . There will likely be 84 stand posts (mild poles) and 200 water ATMs. To keep up cleanliness within the mela space, 15,000 sanitation employees and 150 Ganga Sewa Doot will likely be deployed to sensitise individuals on find out how to use bogs and to teach them towards open defecation, mentioned the ADM.
“The levelling of 12km-long ghats is not an easy task. Day and night road rollers are being used to level the path over which iron plates will be placed. We are watering the area 24×7 to straighten the path for millions of people who will visit,” mentioned Anand.
Every of the 25 sectors within the Kumbh floor could have banks and ATMs in place so devotees can do monetary routine transactions easily and securely. Moreover, there will likely be meals courtsand amusement corners for youths.
The state authorities has focussed on well being care, establishing a 100-bed central hospital, two subcentre hospitals of 20 beds every, 25 first support posts, and 125 ambulances. The administration has additionally sought the cooperation from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Rae Bareli.
Not less than 13 akhadas are anticipated to return to the Kumbh. “Land has already been allocated to 13 Akhadas where they have hoisted their flags amidst chanting of mantras. We first allotted land to those Akhadas of seers who were there in 2019. The new ones were told to send their applications which will be considered after December 15, depending upon the availability of land,” Anand mentioned.
Swami Chidanand Saraswati, president and non secular head of the Parmarth Niketan Ashram at Rishikesh, hailed the preparations. “For 45 days, from Makar Sankranti to Shivratri, this divine confluence transforms into a city of faith — a living testament to the resilience of nature and the boundless power of collective devotion,” he mentioned over the cellphone.
“We are looking forward to the Maha Kumbh,” mentioned businessman and devotee Deepak Goel, “and to experience life at the world’s biggest congregation of culture, religion and spirituality.”