Mahakumbh 2025 | Jan 15 highlights: 8-10 crore devotees expected on Mauni Amavasya, UP CM Yogi holds review meet

The Mahakumbh mela currently underway in Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj will conclude on February 26. The Mahakumbh Mela, which takes place every 12 years, started on January 13.

To ensure seamless communication for millions of devotees and visitors at Mahakumbh 2025, Department of Telecommunications has made several arrangements, upgrading the telecom infrastructure across the Mela area and key public spaces in Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj.

Airfares for Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj have jumped multi-fold on account of the ongoing Mahakumbh 2025, with the air ticket prices, for instance, between Delhi and the city hosting the mega fair, rising up to 21 per cent and flights from Bengaluru going 41 per cent costlier, as per reports. Read full report here

Mahakumbh 2025 Live: After the 'Paush Purnima' bathing ritual festival on the first day of Maha Kumbh and 'Makar Sankranti's Amrit Snan' on the second day, a large-scale cleanliness campaign has been started to clean the Sangam Ghat area.

The dirt on the ghats is being cleaned rapidly. Cleaning workers deployed on the ghats are engaged in removing all types of dirt while a campaign to clean toilets is also being run.

Mahakumbh 2025 Live: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday directed officials to ensure seamless arrangements for the anticipated 8-10 crore devotees expected to participate in the Mauni Amavasya bathing ritual at the Sangam in Maha Kumbh on January 29.

Reviewing the last three days' preparations for the Maha Kumbh with senior officials, the chief minister noted that over six crore pilgrims had taken the holy dip during the Paush Purnima and Makar Sankranti festivals.

Mahakumbh 2025 Live: Electric poles have become essential tools in reuniting lost individuals with their families and guiding pilgrims at the Maha Kumbh Mela here due to the innovative use of QR codes.

In a unique initiative, QR codes have been displayed on 50,000 electric poles throughout the Mela area.

A senior electricity department official said these codes can be scanned using mobile phones to pinpoint a person's geographic location.

Mahakumbh 2025 Live: The Uttar Pradesh government on Wednesday announced the deployment of mobile laboratories to inspect eateries in the Maha Kumbh Mela area to monitor hygiene and safety standards.

Assistant Food Commissioner (Grade 2) Sushil Kumar Singh emphasised the use of 'Food Safety on Wheels' to prevent the distribution of spoiled or adulterated food to the pilgrims.

Mahakumbh 2025 Live: To help the pilgrims navigate easily at the Maha Kumbh Mela and have an enriching experience, Esri India has launched a Webapp, https://kumbhlocator.esri.in/.

The Webapp is available in Hindi and English. The GIS-based Webapp provides information about mela accommodations, snan ghats, parking, roads (with live traffic), weather updates, entry and exit points, lost and found centres, e-rikshaw stands, police stations, fire stations, hospitals, etc.

“I come from Haryana, I went to IIT, then changed to Arts from Engineering, that also didn't work so I kept changing and later I arrived at the final truth. Then, I started exploring...how Sanskrit was written and composed and what makes Sanskrit so special. I had a quest for knowledge...then it shifted...then the question was how the mind works and how you get rid of unwanted thoughts,” said Baba Abhay Singh from Juna Akhada.

Mahakumbh 2025 Live: A 21-member delegation from 10 countries invited by the Centre will take a sacred dip at the Sangam on Thursday, the Uttar Pradesh government said on Wednesday.

The international delegation includes representatives from Fiji, Finland, Guyana, Malaysia, Mauritius, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Trinidad and Tobago, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The delegation has been invited by the External Publicity and Public Diplomacy Division of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Government of India. Arrangements for the delegation's stay have been made at the Tent City in Arail, developed by the Uttar Pradesh State Tourism Development Corporation, it said.

Mahakumbh 2025 Live: Mahakumbh Mela 2025, which began on January 13, is expected to garner ₹2 lakh crore in revenue, according to an estimate by the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT).

The Mahakumbh, which is expected to draw around 450 million devotees over the course of 45 days, will likely cause an economic surge in the region, especially related to the tourism and hospitality industry. Read more

Mahakumbh 2025 Live: Abhay Singh, who studied aerospace engineering at IIT Bombay, arrived at the Mahakumbh, where he was dubbed ‘IITian Baba’, in the pursuit for knowledge.

After leaving his IIT degree and studying the arts, his journey led him to the Mahakumbh. “If you keep pursuing knowledge, where do you reach? This is where you reach,” he said.

The Mahakumbh has attracted several unique sages and devotees from all over the country.

Mahakumbh 2025 Live: Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati spoke to reporters at the Mahakumbh and stated that she was extremely satisfied and happy that PM Modi and UP CM Yogi put together the Mahakumbh.

“It is not only an event but a message to the world about how the world comes together in the name of peace, faith and devotion at the time of conflict and war. This is a ‘Shanti Sangam’,” she said.

Mahakumbh 2025 Live: Hari Om, a devotional OTT platform, has given free subscriptions to all Mahakumbh attendees to celebrate the cultural significance of the mela.

Mahakumbh 2025 Live: PepsiCo which owns the beverages Mountain Dew and Sting, installed a 30-foot-tall and bright Mountain Dew bottle to electrify the area during Mahakumbh and help people navigate better.

It also provided 500 charging points under its brand Sting.

Mahakumbh 2025 Live: According to a report from the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), the Mahakumbh is projected to generate trade worth about ₹2 lakh crore in the region.

Mahakumbh 2025 Live: Major brands such as Dettol, Dabur, Pepsico, Coca-Cola, ITC and Reliance have set up camp ashrams, lined up their products, and are distributing samples at the Mahakumbh mela in order to engage with customers during the event which expects 450 million people to attend over the course of a month.

Mahakumbh 2025 Live: The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has deployed "water ambulance" stationed at Sangam to ensure the safety of devotees.

Underwater drones and 2,700 AI-enabled cameras have been installed in and around the area for safety as well.

Several devotees praised the security arrangements made for the large-scale event.

Mahakumbh 2025 Live: Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati told news agency ANI on Wednesday that she must have done good deeds in her past life to be able to attend the Mahakumbh and extended her gratitude towards PM Modi and CM Yogi Adityanath.

She said, "I was thinking about what good deeds I did in my past life that I got this opportunity to attend this event. This is not only the Sangam of Ganga, Yamuna and Saraswati, but it signifies the whole world as one family when people of many countries and races take the holy dip together.

Mahakumbh 2025 Live: Devotees as well as Spiritual head of the Rishikesh-based Parmarth Niketan Ashram, Swami Chidanand Saraswati and Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati attended a hawan at the aramarth Niketan Kumbh Mela Camp on the second day of the Mahakumbh.

Mahakumbh Mela 2025 Live: The Mahakumbh which will take place over 45 days, is expected to garner 450 million attendees to take part in the bathing rituals and festivities of the event.

In the first two days of the event, 50 million devotees visited , reported news agency ANI.

Mahakumbh Mela 2025 Live: Devotees participating in the Mahakumbh expressed their satisfaction with the management and security arrangements made for the event.

Vijay Katheria, a resident of Kanpur, told PTI, “My experience was good. Proper safety arrangements were made for the devotees and adequate police force was maintained from the security point of view.”

Others also echoed his sentiments.

Mahakumbh Mela 2025 Live: More than 50 million devotees have taken the holy dip known as the ‘Amrit Snan’ since the Mahakumbh began on January 13.

The Mahakumbh is set to be one of the biggest gatherings in the world, and will continue for 45 days.

Mahakumbh Mela 2025 Live: Mahamandaleshwar Swami Rupendra Prakash Ji Maharaj on Tuesday praised CM Yogi Adityanath for organising the Mahakumbh in an orderly fashion.

“In the Mahakumbh of 2025, the management is very good. There is cleanliness. Water and electricity facilities are managed well... I did my first Kumbh in 1977, and after that, I attended all the Ardh Kumbh Melas. The management used to be very poor... The management is very well under the Yogi government,” he told ANI.

Mahakumbh Mela 2025 Live: BJP leader Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti spoke to news agency ANI about his experience of the Mahakumbh as someone who has been attending the Mela since 1982.

He said, "I have been attending the Kumbh Mela since 1982. This time the experience is very different. A new city has been set up. We are extremely fortunate to be able to be part of this once in 144 years celebration. It was amazing to see the presence of our youth here in large numbers."