River Ganga and the Sangam were abound with devotees on Friday morning, who had braved the cold weather to take a holy dip in the waters on the occasion of the Basant Panchami bathing festival.
The Magh Mela is ongoing in Prayagraj, with special civic and security arrangements made to accommodate the throng of visitors.
On Friday, officials said around 1.04 crore people took the holy drip in the city, which holds special significance on Basant Panchami since it is believed to be the confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati. An official of the Prayagraj Mela Authority said devotees had begun arriving in large numbers at the Sangam area from late Thursday night.
Tirtha purohit Rajendra Mishra said the day is traditionally marked by wearing yellow clothes, donating yellow items and worshipping Goddess Saraswati. He said the festival also signals a change in season and is celebrated as a cultural event, with people applying gulal and observing rituals associated with the onset of spring.
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Divisional Commissioner, Saumya Agrawal, said the Magh Mela has been organised across 800 hectares in seven sectors, comprising more than 25,000 toilets and over 3,500 sanitation workers deployed.
A tent city has been set up at the Mela for devotees wishing to observe short-term ‘kalpavas’, with facilities for meditation and yoga. “To facilitate smooth movement of pilgrims, bike taxis and golf carts have also been made available,” she added.
Heavy security arrangements include the deployment of over 10,000 police personnel and the use of AI-enabled software as well as drones.
Superintendent of Police (Magh Mela), Neeraj Pandey, said that crowd management and traffic flow in mind, 42 temporary parking facilities have been created this year, with capacity to accommodate over one lakh vehicles.
Bathing ghats with all basic amenities have been constructed for the Magh Mela 2025-26, he added.
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