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EYE ON INDIA JANUARY 17, 2025 | The Indian Eye 8

MAHAKUMBH MELA 2025

From free meals to entertainment: India

prepares for biggest gathering of humanity

The Adani Group and the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) have joined
hands to serve meals to devotees at Prayagraj

OUR BUREAU
Prayagraj/Ahmedabad
he Mahakumbh is being celebrated after 12
years, and over 4.5 crore (45 million) devo-
Ttees are expected for the event. During the
Mahakumbh, devotees will gather at the Sangam,
the confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna, and Saras-
wati rivers, to take a holy dip believed to absolve
sins and grant moksha (liberation). The Mahakum-
bh will conclude on February 26.
The Adani Group and the International So-
ciety for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) have
joined hands to serve meals to devotees at the Ma-
hakumbh Mela in Prayagraj.
The Mahaprasad Seva will be offered for the
entire duration of the Mahakumbh Mela, from Jan-
uary 13 to February 26.
To thank ISKCON for this initiative, Adani
Group Chairman Gautam Adani met Guru Prasad
Swami, the Chairman of ISKCON Governing Body
Commission (GBC), on Thursday. Speaking about Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani meets ISKCON Governing Body Commission Chairman Guru Prasad Swami Maharaj
ISKCON’s support in offering the Mahaprasad
Seva, Gautam Adani said, “Kumbh is a sacred in Ahmedabad on Thursday (ANI)
place of seva, where every devotee gets involved
in the name of seva to God. It is my good fortune January 16 to February 24 in Prayagraj, with an im- “One hundred and twenty-five road ambulanc-
that we are starting the ‘Mahaprasad Seva’ for the pressive lineup of popular artists from various fields. es have been equipped with 15 Advance Life Sup-
devotees at the Maha Kumbh in collaboration with The festivities will begin with a performance port (ALS). Additionally, air ambulances and seven
ISKCON.” by Mahadevan on the opening day, while Mohit river ambulances have also been deployed. Of the
“With the blessings of Maa Annapurna, free Chauhan will close the event with his soulful mu- seven river ambulances, you will get to see one of
food will be provided to lakhs of devotees. Today, sic on the final day. Throughout the Maha Kumbh, them being deployed today and the rest will be sta-
I got the opportunity to meet Guru Prasad Swamiji several acclaimed artists, including Kailash Kher, tioned from tomorrow. The government has made
of ISKCON and I deeply experienced the power of Shaan Mukherjee, Hariharan, Kavita Krishnamur- proper arrangements to deal with any kind of situa-
dedication towards seva. In the true sense, seva is thy, Kavita Seth, Rishab Rikhiram Sharma, Shova- tion,” Pathak said.
the highest form of patriotism. Seva is meditation, na Narayan, Dr. L Subramaniam, Bickram Ghosh, Inspector General of Police, Prayagraj Tarun
seva is prayer and seva is God,” he added. Malini Awasthi, and many others, will perform at Gaba on Wednesday said that a 7-layer security
The Mahaprasad Seva will be offered to 50 the event while creating a mesmerizing spiritual en- scheme is being implemented to avert any untoward
lakh devotees and the meals would be prepared in vironment for the devotees. incident in the mass religious gathering.
two kitchens in and outside the Mela area. The Ma- Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi “Mahakumbh 2025 is the biggest gathering of
haprasad will be distributed at 40 places in the Ma- Adityanath visited Prayagraj to review the prepara- humanity... We are committed to providing good
hakumbh area and 2,500 volunteers will be involved tions for the Maha Kumbh. He visited various akha- arrangements here and the Mahakumbh festival
in this initiative. ras and met sadhus. should be celebrated in a very safe and orderly man-
Golf carts have been arranged for the differ- During his visit, the CM also took the ‘Ni- ner... We are ensuring impenetrable and foolproof
ently abled, elderly and mothers with children. Five shadraj’ cruise in the Sangam ghat area and re- security here. We have implemented a 7-layer secu-
lakh copies of Geeta Saar will also be distributed viewed preparations. He was accompanied by offi- rity scheme in which people will be checked and sus-
among the devotees. cials during the visit. picious persons will be identified at different levels.
Also, the Uttar Pradesh government has ex- Earlier, speaking about the security and safety We are also coordinating with different agencies in-
tended invitations to popular artists from across the arrangements, Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minis- cluding state and center agencies,” Tarun Gaba said.
country including singer Shankar Mahadevan Mo- ter Brajesh Pathak said that the administration has “We are also trying to utilize AI-enabled cam-
hit Chauhan, Shaan and Kailash Kher to perform at deployed 125 ambulances that have been equipped eras and using a total of 2700 cameras. And we are
the Maha Kumbh Mela 2025. with 15 advanced life support (ASL) systems, which taking all necessary action to ensure a safe and se-
The grand cultural event will take place from extend basic life support in case of emergency. cure completion of Maha Kumbh,” he added.

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