Allahabad Kumbh is the biggest congregation of people, devotees, believers, non-believers, curious and voyeurs not collective or any kind frenzy. It’s religious, social but not business or politics. Number of visitors are from thousands to lakhs and on some peak days more.
It’s held at Tirtharaj Prayag, every six and 12 years, to reenact the legend of “samudra manthan” – churning of the seas that beget the nectar or “amrit” was an act of the humanity for paving the way for salvation. Interestingly, Prayagaraj does not exist anywhere.
Still it is better known as Allahabad, which the British spelt in a wrong way thinking AIlahabad originated from Allah or some say Emperor Akbar’s Din-i-Ilahi, was actually named thousands of years ago after Ila or Ilah, the daughter of Vaivaswat Manu by her son Pururava, from where the legendary Kuru-Pandavas of Mahabharata originated. He called it Ilah-vas or the abode of Ila. Even Ain-i-Akbari written by Abul Fazal mentions the suba or province as Ilahvas. Akbar did not change the name. Nor any Muslim ruler did.
Ignorance of the past has led to an improper renaming that cost the UP government treasury over Rs 3000
crore. The city should get back its original name Ilahvas in continuity of the sanatan tradition and tribute to a place, in the name of a woman, a rare occurence.
The “sagar manthan” signifies an effort all devatas also called sura and their detractors, asusras, jointly made an effort to make the living on the earth comfortable with the new wealth found beneath the seas in their bid to attain spiritual glory. The legend signifies that together the mankind could progress and attain
salvation. Each Kumbh mela or fair signifies.
The Kumbh also means pot. The Allahabad Kumbh is held at the confluence of Ganga, Yamuna and invisible Saraswati rivers – Triveni, where mankind meets like the waters to merge themselves in that great pot to ensure Vishwa maitri and jagat kalyan – friendship and benevolence of everyone across the globe.
That’s the spirit. Merging of the mankind for quest of truth in that great pot called the kumbh, leads to a new all-encompassing dialogue breaking barriers of religion, caste, communities and self. Together in kumbh- the pot, through intense dialogue the mankind becomes one entity marching ahead. This is the largest communication that is held anywhere for creating syndrome of love – “Vishwa prem” that ties the
mankind together. That’s the spirituality. That’s the enterprise to have “Vishwa samvad” for tying all.
It’s a unique fare. Where all sects of Hinduism, including Shaivites, Vaishnavites, Jain, Buddhism, Shaivites, dispersed in 10 major Dasnami Akhadas, and beyond congregate to convey to the world the message of living together with utmost love, compassion and fellow feelings with kind heartedness. The Akhadas evolved through centuries. Adi Shankaracharya is known to have reorganised and united them in one fold despite their different faiths in different gods or devatas. The Akhadas are supreme body to define religion, life and wel being of the masses. They have stringent rules for their sansyasis, popularly known as Naga or naked ascetics.
Gradually as the Muslim atrocities increased on Indian populace, they were once again reorganised during the reign of Emperor Akbar. One of the famous sanyasi Madhusudan Saraswati said to have approached Akbar with a plea to grant the Naga sanyasi arm training so that they could save indigenous Indians. The Emperor realising that his official forces could not check the violence on the locals, agreed and gave permission to Saraswati.
This transformed the Akhadas. They not only give rigorous training in religious and spiritual practices but also armed training to the sanyasis. They have saved millions during the Islamic rule. As Pakistan was formed, thousands of Naga sanyasis were killed under cannon fire. The sanyasis have the responsibility of
establishing peace and order in the country. They are more than spiritual a reserve force for checking atrocities.
The Kumbh Mela is held regularly for centuries as per Puranical texts and historical records of Chinese
traveller, Yuan Chuang, who visited India during the time of King Harshvardhan. He has written that not the king gave enormous “daan” or gifts in charity at the Kumbh but also was accessible to the people. The meal impressed him as even in the seventh century AD, five lakh people congregated during the month-long fair.
Stampede and Politics- The state or the government has little role in it except facilitation for religious bodies. The mela does not have political colour. Many tried to take political advantages but none succeeded. The first prime minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and many other VIPs were present at the 1954 Kumbh at Allahabad. They might have thought that their presence would create a fervour for the government or the political party, Congress, they represented. The VIP presence of February 3, 1954,
instead led to chaotic administrative situation, diversion of traffic and death of at least 800 persons in the stampede. For Nehru 1957 polls were not easy. Kerala was lost to the Communist Party of India. Indira Gandhi had the Mela advanced by a year in 1977. She and the Congress had a severe drubbing. After 2013 Mela stampede, the Samajwadi Party lost the elections in 2017.
This scribe had a chance to be present at 1954 mela and still remembers certain scenes of boat capsizing in the Ganga, near Jhunsi, camels and elephants run amok trampling the thatched hutments that sheltered kalpavasis, the pilgrims, who stay there from Makara Sankranti, that is January 14 to Shiv Ratri, end of February.
From the next Kumbha in 1966, a decision was taken that VIPs would not visit the meal. However, since the 2013 fair this is being observed in breach. After 1954, the 2013 mela witnessed stampedes even at Allahabad railway station. The 2025 fair has also seen a galaxy of VIPs, including state and central
ministers paying visits and having dip in the VIP area at Sangam.
Otherwise, the mela is organised well by the Allahabad district administration, which holds the annual Magh Mela during this time every year. Even this year, the mela area was spread from the Triveni sangam to Phaphamau, a distance of about seven km. Over the Ganga 28 pontoon bridges have been erected and the mela is divided into a temporary city with the status of a district in 25 sectors and assisted by the Allahabad district administration.
Each sector has roads for easy movement, access to water, electricity, communication towers, police station, fire station, banks and ATMs, food courts, amusement areas for children, and Lost and Found centers for reuniting the groups or families Mismanaged: Largely the mela is well-organised. But the number of visitors are often exaggerated. This time is no exception. It is claimed that 40 lakh pilgrim would visit during almost 40 days of the mela and generate Rs 25000 crore revenue against an expense released of Rs 4000 crore by the state government. It is claimed that on January 14, Makar Sankranti 3.5 crore visited the fair. It did not estimate that this would require 20000 special trains.
Largely the visitors come for a day or two. This time they face enormous problems in reaching the Allahabad city or Kumbh ground from any station at Subedarganj, Phaphamau, Chheoki, Jhunsi, Prayag, all
situated at a distance of five to 10 km. They have to walk for 5 to 10 km or more. For the sake of VIPs they are made to go through detours as roads are barricaded. The VIPs usually are said to have easy access as they are driven through marked roads, escorted by a posse of policemen. For them roads are being barricaded causing further inconvenience to city dwellers and several thousands of non-VIP visitors every day.
There is unrest in the city as nobody could commute easily. The traffic mismanagement has made the city and Kumbh grounds not easily accessible for most people.
Thousands, some say lakhs of visitors, largely from the poorer sections spend the cold wintry nights in the open grounds. Various photographs are testimony. Though accommodations are available from Rs 40,000 a day for luxury tent to any higher limits as well for those who can afford.
The business part of the Mela that enriches the official coffers are best served by allocation of land to akhadas, other organisations, shops and commercial establishments. A 20-feet by 10- feet shop enclosure costs Rs 16 lakh or so, almost double of the 2019 Ardh Kumbh. Parkings and all other facilities have fee. The adage in the mela ground is nothing free except the flowers showered at the Sangam from helicopters.
Commercial shops that sell woollens or blankets have moderate sales. Most pilgrims because of traffic issues cannot visit the shopping areas nor it is their priority.
They are keener on having a dip nearest to the Sangam, visit the akhadas, listen to the discourses, enjoy Raslilas and other thematic presentations. Normal business for most does not generate enough revenue.
The Kumbha is not a district fair. It is an international socioreligious communication congress. Nobody has like the orchestrated outburst against a community. People visit the Allahabad Kumbh to see throngs of people coming from different corners of the country, dressed differently in their local attire, carrying their own food – puri, kachauri or roti or even biscuits and snacks, having darshan of sages and they also have
little bit of piety donating to any sadhu, sanyasi or others whatever they can.
The government or politics is peripheral. If they serve well along with the administration, they don’t get kudos. But if they fail they get the spank.
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