11 new bridges, tent city in Nashik Kumbh master plan

The plan will now be placed before the high-power committee headed by the chief minister for a final nod

Mumbai: Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday said that a master plan is now ready for the Simhastha Kumbh Mela to be held in Nashik in 2027. The master plan encompasses new infrastructure projects including 11 bridges and several roads, sewage treatment plants, tent cities and residential facilities for participants, restoration of the Trimbakeshwar temple and sacred reservoirs and development of new ghats, Fadnavis said in Nashik after holding a meeting to review preparations for the mega event.

Fadnavis offered prayers at the Trimbakeshwar temple on Sunday. (PTI)

“The master plan for the Simhastha Kumbh Mela was presented before me today. It will be implemented in two phases – the first will be completed by the time of the Kumbh mela and second by 2028-29,” Fadnavis told reporters. The plan will now be placed before the high-power committee headed by the chief minister for a final nod.

The state government has earmarked an area of 300 acres for the religious festival that is held in Nashik every 12 years. Like in case of the Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj, it involves ritual bathing, on the banks of Godavari river at Trimbakeshwar and the Ram Kund in Nashik. Ritual bathing was held only at Trimbakeshwar till 1789, when the Maratha Peshwa assigned the Ram Kund to Vaishnavites following a clash between Vaishnavites and Shaivites.

Fadnavis said the state government plans to spend ₹1,100 crore on Trimbakeshwar alone and arranging funds would not be a problem. There will be a designated route for emergency services and vehicles barring ambulances and fire engines would not be permitted on it, he said.

Later, while addressing the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Young Indians event in Nashik, he said that despite the limited time remaining before the event, the government was confident of tackling various challenges.

“Had the preparations for the Kumbh Mela started in 2020, we would have been in a comfortable position,” the chief minister said. Artificial intelligence, crowd management, augmented reality and virtual reality tools would be used to ensure smooth conduct of the fair keeping in mind the massive turnout at the Prayagraj Kumbh Mela this year, he said.

Fadnavis had earlier announced that a special legislation, called the Kumbh Mela Authority Act, would be enacted to confer administrative and financial powers on the authority that manages the event.