Seers of akharas meet UP CM for Ardh Kumbh preparations

Seers of different akharas today met Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath here, and requested him to provide them basic amenities during the 2019 Ardh Kumbh fair to be held in Allahabad.
The meeting lasted for close to two hours.
"We requested that akharas, which are yet to be settled in the mela area, be given land by the state government," Mahant Dharamdas of Ayodhya-based Nirvani Ani Akhara told PTI.
"We also urged the state government to ensure that there is adequate drinking water (supply) in the Kumbh Mela area, and at the same time, there is sufficient water in the Ganga river during the Kumbh Mela," he said.

He also said that seers are willing to extend their help to the state government for cleaning of the river Ganga.
Seers from Panchdashnaam Juna Akhara and Digambar Ani Akhara were also present during the meeting.

The Ardh Kumbh fair is held in every six years at Haridwar and Allahabad where millions of people take a holy dip in the Ganga river.
When asked to comment on some fraud self-styled godmen (babas), Dharamdas said: "It is absolutely incorrect to call them babas. They are not babas by any definition. They belong to grihast (family) category, and should focus on managing their grihasti (family and household)."

Irked by recent controversies surrounding self-styled godmen, the Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad, the apex body of Hindu sadhus, on Sunday released a list of 14 "fake babas" includes names like Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, Rampal, Asaram and his son Narayan Sai, and demanded a crackdown on "rootless cult leaders" by bringing in a legislation.