Mahashivaratri: From Prayagraj to Kashi, mega plans in place for crowd mgmt
Over 2.5 crore devotees expected in Prayagraj, over 12 lakh in Varanasi, and over 8 lakh expected in Ayodhya. Other major cities to also witness devotee rush
The state government authorities are on their toes with multiple arrangements and diversions put in place for crowd management.
Several thousand vehicles and people stranded for long hours on different highways of the state, headed for the Sangam and to visit the Kashi Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi, on Wednesday.
Other than the rush for Prayagraj and Varanasi, a major spill over of devotees coming from faraway districts and states are heading towards other pilgrimage towns of Vindhyachal in Mirzapur, Ram temple in Ayodhya and Chitrakoot as well.
Over 2.5 crore devotees expected in Prayagraj while over 12 lakh devotees expected in Varanasi and over 8 lakh crowd expected in Ayodhya while returning from Maha Kumbh and Varanasi, said a senior police official.
Similarly, over two lakh people are expected to reach Chitrakoot and several thousands at Shiva Temples in different districts, he added.
Besides, a large number of Kanwar pilgrims travelling on foot and different means of transport are also witnessed on routes heading towards Shiva temples in different districts across the state for ‘Jalabhishek’.
“Adequate police deployment has been done for their safety and smooth movement on highways and inner roads of Prayagraj, Varanasi and Ayodhya. Security arrangements have been reinforced at religious sites with anti-sabotage checks and proper crowd management,” said UP director general of police (DGP), Prashant Kumar, adding, “We have made holding areas in Prayagraj’s adjoining districts to control inflow to Mahakumbh in Prayagraj and diversions on roads and highways heading towards other pilgrimage cities like Ayodhya, Varanasi and Chitrakoot,” said an additional director general rank official of UP Police headquarters in Lucknow privy to the development.
Earlier on Monday, the DGP issued directives to all zonal additional director generals of police (ADGs), commissioners, inspectors General (IGs), deputy inspectors general (DIGs), and district police chiefs across the state for ensuring effective security arrangements and traffic management for Mahashivaratri on Wednesday.
The state police chief also ordered special monitoring at railway stations, metro stations, and bus terminals, with sufficient police presence and checking teams deployed for crowd control.
He said that social media platforms should be closely monitored to track misinformation and objectionable content, asking authorities to take immediate legal action against such content and ensure prompt refutation.
