Come January 15 and the ‘Biggest Fair in the World’ is set to begin till March 4 this year at Prayagraj (formerly Allahabad) in the North Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. This Fair is the famous ‘Kumbh Mela’ 2019, which is expected to attract over 12 crore pilgrims and visitors with about three crore people attending on ‘Mauni Amasvaya’ itself.

Uttar Pradesh Urban Development Minister Suresh Kumar Khanna told media here today that around 20 lakh pilgrims were expected on a daily basis, besides about 10 lakh foreign tourists visiting the Fair. “This event is organized at four places in the country and the UNESCO has included Kumbh in the list of +Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity+,” he said while noting that six ‘shahi snan’ would be held on various dates during the Kumbh Mela.

“A township has come up at the Kumbh site with the arrangements comprising 671 schemes and featuring a Command Control Centre, 40 watch towers and involvement of paramilitary, commandos and other security forces for monitoring crowd flow and security, 1.12 lakh new toilets and 20,000 resthouses,” he said while noting that Rs 2,900 crore has been spent on making these arrangements for the Kumbh Mela – with support also from the Central Government.

Emphasizing that programmes based on India’s ancient cultural heritage would be organized alongside food festivals etc., the Minister said that he sought support for the Kumbh Mela from Maharashtra by meeting Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and the State Governor C. Vidyasagar Rao.

Lauding the Indian Government’s efforts also in increasing flights by constructing a new civil air terminal in Prayagraj that connected with major cities like Bengaluru, Indore, Nagpur, Patna etc, he said a heliport too is being set up there to provide chopper rides for tourists. For providing high-quality tourist facilities, a ‘premium tent city’ is being developed in the Kumbh Mela area, he said.

To ensure representation of every cultural discipline of the country, arrangements were being made for 30 thematic gates, over 200 high quality cultural programmes and laser shows on cultural topics, besides food courts, vending zones, exhibitions and tourist walk areas, he added.

Sunil Khanna, Past Chairman (Confederation of Indian Industry), said the CII is the national partner for this Kumbh which is highlighting cultural tourism for India by showcasing Indian traditions and their historical and mythological relevance. The expenditure on the present Kumbh Mela was equivalent to the cost of building a new city, he noted.

Describing the Kumbh Mela as the ‘Biggest Human Congregation on Earth,” Sanjay Kumar, Special Secretary (Urban Development, Government of Uttar Pradesh), said that in 644 A.D., over half million pilgrims had gathered then for this Kumbh Mela – which is considered the ‘Oldest Fair’ in India.