Kumbh Mela 2019: How a Rs 40-bn plan for 120 mn pilgrims was implemented

All stakeholders - the government, religious organisations, local businesses - in Prayagraj are expecting the upcoming fair to be bigger than ever

At 11.30 pm on a Tuesday, the anteroom of Vijay Kiran Anand receives a constant stream of visitors. Anand is the meladhikari, an equivalent of district magistrate, for the Prayagraj Mela Authority. The visitors range from government officials, sadhus and a few curious locals. Everyone wants information on the Ardh Kumbh Mela, which begins on January 15, 2019. At 11.45 pm, Anand’s voice rises and all others fade away. “We don’t have the time for such basic errors,” he thunders at a young executive. A middle-aged couple exchange proud looks. “Their” city, “their” mela, has never been organised on this scale or with this level of seriousness before.

It is midnight by the time I meet Anand. His staff tells me he usually works till 2 am on “good days”. “Kumbh khatam hone tak toh aise hi chalega (It’s going to be like this till the Kumbh ends),” remarks one, stifling a yawn. Inside his office, Anand sits behind a desk surrounded by a team from EY, the global consultancy firm working with the Uttar Pradesh government on the Kumbh project. “The mela is one of the biggest mass events in the world and we are all working towards setting an international benchmark — creating a temporary city on a riverbed,” he says. I look at my watch and ask him what motivates his staff to work these hours. “I don’t have to ask them to stay. Everyone is motivated to be a part of this immense learning experience, especially because all eyes — including the international media’s — are on us,” he says, as executives exchange knowing smiles. Anand’s team is also aiming for three entries into the Guinness Book of World Records — for sanitation, traffic management and city beautification.

Walls and some buildings in Prayagraj sport colourful murals. Photo: Sanjay K Sharma

All stakeholders — the government, religious organisations, local businesses — in Prayagraj (the city till recently known as Allahabad) are expecting the upcoming fair to be bigger than ever. Organised on a budget of roughly Rs 40 billion and in the works for close to two years, this Kumbh — though lower in religious significance for being the ardh or “half” Kumbh — has ramifications for the Bharatiya Janata Party-led governments at the Centre and in the state. If the cost of more permanent infrastructure — such as a new airport and an upgrade of the railway station — is added, the figure rises by Rs 100 billion. The new airport, built at a cost of Rs 1.6 billion, was inaugurated by the prime minister a few days ago and will connect Prayagraj to several cities in time for the Kumbh. The Maha Kumbh in 2013, which occurs once every 12 years, was completed on a budget of approximately Rs 13 billion. The scale of this Kumbh has as much to do with the will to leave behind a legacy as mobilising political support. A gathering of 120 million people is an excellent political opportunity ahead of the forthcoming Lok Sabha election.

The focus this Kumbh is on sanitation, transportation, information and communication, accommodation, food, security and entertainment. The Uttar Pradesh government has partnered with EY to consult on and work with it on all these aspects, developing plans and executing them through the nodal Mela Authority. For Pragyal Singh, partner at EY and head of the project, this Kumbh is his second. The previous Samajwadi Party government had enlisted EY as a partner to facilitate a Harvard University study, Kumbh Mela: Mapping the Ephemeral Megacity. “This time, our role includes consulting the government on better physical and experiential planning, digital initiatives including the website and a dedicated mobile app and a legacy that all future Kumbh melas can be conceptualised on,” says Singh.

The Mela Authority’s office near the Sangam. Photo: Sanjay K Sharma

The Mela Authority has also been given permanent status and will continue to exist under the state government after the fair ends. “The idea is to enhance pilgrim experience, create a brand-new city, use the most modern technology but also ensure that traditions are not lost,” explains Anand. He reiterates that “tradition remains at the core” of the Kumbh, a statement that probably owes to the precarious balance he has to maintain between different stakeholders.

For instance, the sadhu akharas (seminaries) wield considerable political and religious clout. Plots for their tents have to be allocated judiciously — keeping them happy but also not alienating other pilgrims. “As the river changes course every year, some of the plots that the akharas previously held no longer exist. For this, we had to recreate the map of the previous Kumbh and then approximate it to the current topography,” says EY’s Aishwarya Sharma, project director for the “pilgrim experience enhancement” project. Sadhus would often recall their previous location as “kaali sadak se teen kadam door (three steps from the black street)”, and upsetting them would mean risking conflicts with the Mela Authority. The authority’s office near the temporary Triveni Sangam (there can be no permanent structures on and around the riverbed) sees a constant shuffle of sadhus, most of whom arrive in SUVs accompanied by armed police guards. This year, an algorithm-based methodology has been employed to allocate plots for tents to akharas and religious organisations.

A model of Sankriti Gram, an experiential museum. Photo: Sanjay K Sharma

But disgruntlement is perhaps inevitable. On the banks of the Yamuna, Kamlesh Tiwari, a purohit (priest) sips a cup of tea while grumbling about the Goods and Services Tax. “All this pomp and show that you see is our money, the people’s money. This is not even the Maha Kumbh,” he says. “This is all politics,” he declares. “All these akharas have been given plots right next to the river and we have been pushed to the edge of the mela. If you bring your elderly parents to the Kumbh for a puja, how do you expect them to walk all the way to the Sangam?” Plot locations determine how many people come to the pandits and how much money they can make. “If they had built the Ram Mandir [in Ayodhya], I would have still said this government did some work,” he says, eliciting muted cheers from his companions. “Kyun? Kuchh galat kaha maine? (Why? Have I said something wrong?),” he demands.

The Mela Authority is aware that it is walking a tightrope. This year, it has introduced services for pilgrims that were once only provided by sadhu akharas. For instance, The Akshaya Patra Foundation will run community kitchens for pilgrims. In previous years, those not associated with a religious organisation or who turned up without bookings had to sleep on makeshift beds or in their own vehicles. In this edition, the government will make available 20,000 beds at nominal rates. For pilgrims who book in advance — and of course, political functionaries, international delegations and VIPs — there are 4,200 “luxury” tents.

To decongest the area around the Sangam, the UP government has installed over 20 pontoon bridges across the river. Photo: Sanjay K Sharma

Aboard Dhiren Nishad’s boat, which sets off from the “VIP Ghat” as day breaks, he rattles off all the government work for this Kumbh. “These floaties you see will be used to barricade the water and streamline the boat traffic. All these shops will be gone,” he gestures towards the ghats. A Siberian gull flies past our boat. When we reach the Sangam — revered as the confluence of the Yamuna and Ganga — Nishad scoops up some water for me to sprinkle on my head. “Look at that fort that Akbar built. One day, hopefully, we will be able to say the same about the Ram Mandir,” he says with a glint in his eye. He needs little urging to expand on the subject. “I saw a video where Muslims were saying bad things about us Hindus. If they can gather a force, can’t we?” When I point out that the videos were probably fake, he pauses.

But then continues, “Yes, but they are like that. Though I must tell you, the Muslims of Allahabad are very nice people. They build local temples so that we leave their mosques alone.”

With over 122,500 toilets, sanitation is a major focus for the Kumbh project. Photo: Sanjay K Sharma

At his office, Ashish Goel, the Prayagraj divisional commissioner, looks at me quizzically. “The Kumbh is always a sensitive event, elections or not. We have a robust security and surveillance system in place,” he declares. The government will install 1,135 surveillance cameras at 268 locations in 18 districts of the mela. Of the nearly 80,000 government employees involved in the Kumbh project, nearly half are from the state police. An integrated control and command centre, which will act as a “war room” for all security provisions and agencies, has been put in place near the Sangam. “We want a safe experience for everyone. This time, our mission is to host a ‘divya (divine) Kumbh and bhavya (grand) Kumbh’,” says Goel. He is echoing the motto painted on hoardings and posters across Prayagraj. Goel has been associated with the Kumbh project since April 2017, right after Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath took office. His is a hot seat: Goel was responsible for conceptualising the project and coordinating with 28 state departments and five central government departments.

The sanitation vertical of the project is a point of pride for the Mela Authority. Over 122,500 toilets will be put in place for the 2019 Kumbh, a dramatic increase over the 35,000 in 2013. That year, only about 4,000 were public toilets; the rest were given to religious organisations with tents. This time, 42,500 community toilets will be available to all visitors. Septic tanks will be desludged and cleaned mechanically, keeping the whole exercise free of manual scavenging. The Kumbh will also, for the first time, feature mechanisms to transport waste to Prayagraj’s sewage treatment plants. Nearly Rs 2.5 billion has been set aside for sanitation alone. The aim is to make the Kumbh 100 per cent open defecation-free.

Budget: Rs40 bn 
Visitors: 120 million (expected)
Toilets: 122,500
Area: 3,200 ha
Personnel: 80,000
Security: 1,135 (surveillance cameras)

Traffic management is another crucial aspect of the mammoth logistical exercise that is the Kumbh. “Crossings in Prayagraj have been renovated keeping scientific traffic management guidelines in mind. A shuttle service from parking lots will keep the mela area decongested,” claims Goel. The UP government has planned 95 parking lots spread over 1,253 hectares, a majority of them within one and five km of prominent bathing areas at the river. Over 20 pontoon bridges over the river will allow pilgrims to access different areas of the mela more easily. An EY team is working with Google to integrate all major spots — parking areas, tent cities, bus stands, entertainment zones, help desks, and so on — into its Maps app for the duration of the mela. These will disappear from the app as soon as the fair ends and the structures are dismantled.

To disperse crowds from the singular hub on the river, the authority has also set up several entertainment options for pilgrims. These include things like “selfie points”, convention centres for performances and talks, and food courts. Sanskriti Gram is one such project, built along the river towards Arail district. Spread over seven acres and built at a cost of Rs 100 million, it will feature India’s cultural history through the diorama model. The idea of this experiential museum was first conceptualised by actor Chandraprakash Dwivedi, popular for playing Chanakya on television and a member of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh-affiliate Sanskar Bharti. “The idea was to showcase our history right from vedic to modern ages, giving the visitors a perambulatory experience of our country’s culture,” he says.

Boats at the Sangam. Photo: Sanjay K Sharma

He passed the mantle on to Ashwini Shrivastav, a Mumbai-based art director who runs Dott Art Vision. Shrivastav designed Sanskriti Gram based on the sun’s rays, the centre forming a gazebo for visitors to unwind, 17 “rays” as galleries with dioramas and four “rays” for entry and exit. One gallery, dedicated to India’s Indo-Islamic history, features Dara Shikoh but, predictably enough, excludes Aurangzeb. The main entrance is a clay model replicating the “samudra manthan (churning of the ocean)” scene from Hindu mythology. “There is not an ounce of plastic or artificial fibre in all of this space. From jute and bamboo to paddy fibre, everything is eco-friendly,” says Shrivastav. Some 290 artists, 150 labourers and 120 technicians continue to burn the midnight oil to ready the space before January 15.

One of the most frightening — and all-too-true — clichés of the Kumbh Mela is of getting lost in the milling multitudes. The Mela Authority has given this aspect considerable thought. Instead of the usual two lost-and-found centres, operated at every Kumbh by volunteer organisations Bahuguna Sanstha and Bharat Seva Dal, the 2019 Kumbh will have an unprecedented 15 such centres. Each will be equipped with large LED screens that will display photos and details of missing persons. It is estimated that nearly 100,000 people are reported missing at every Kumbh (most are then miraculously found). But instead of the blaring announcements that disrupt the “spiritual experience”, relatives of missing persons will be able to wait in privacy and comfort at these centres, and will even be given blankets and a cup of tea. The funding for this project — close to Rs 15 million — has come from the UP Police.

Walking around the mela area, past giant murals depicting mythological scenes, swathes of sandy land for upcoming tents and frenzied, noisy activity, I think about the sensory assault that the Kumbh offers the pilgrim and the information overload it presents to a journalist. My head is spinning with information on projects and initiatives, and buzzing with multiple opinions and challenges, not to mention sleep deprivation (I’ve slept three hours in my 24 here). And the Kumbh Mela hasn’t even begun.

At the Mela Authority office just past midnight, a sanitation vendor walks out of an official’s cabin. “Sir, don’t delay this. Please get this done soon,” the official says. “I just have to get it signed. The night is still young,” replies the vendor. But the sun will soon rise on the Kumbh.