Seers, saints and their swanky rides on high-end vehicles in Kumbh city

Swanky cars and smart sports utility vehicles (SUVs) zip around on the chequered steel plate-lined temporary streets of Kumbh Nagri, or the tent city that has come up on the banks of the Sangam, the confluence of the Ganga and the Yamuna rivers and the mythical Saraswati

A section of ascetics can be seen taking the luxurious way to travel this Kumbh Mela, courtesy high-end vehicles.

One of the swanky, high-end vehicles used by top seers camping at the Sangam in Prayagraj for the Kumbh Mela(HT Photo)

Swanky cars and smart sports utility vehicles (SUVs) zip around on the chequered steel plate-lined temporary streets of Kumbh Nagri, or the tent city that has come up on the banks of the Sangam, the confluence of the Ganga and the Yamuna rivers and the mythical Saraswati. The tent city has been set up to accommodate saints, seers and pilgrims during the Kumbh Mela, which began on Tuesday and will continue till March 4.

Holy men and their organisations have fleets of these luxury cars and high-end SUVs at their service.

However, there is hardly any seer or office-bearer of any akhada (Hindu monastic order) ready to go on record on the issue. Refusing to be named, many seers and saints claim that barring a few, most of these luxury vehicles belong to different akhadas or their disciples. They have been bought and made available to the seers for their use, these saints say.

Many of these vehicles belong to senior seers holding the post of peetadheeshwars, mahamandaleshwars, mahants and mandaleshwars. Others are said to belong to their disciples and followers.

Most such vehicles sport wide nameplates, proudly announcing the posts of the seers or the organisations to which they belong.

Symbols of opulence, these vehicles dazzle passers-by and stand in stark contrast to the thousands of other saints whose tales of self-sacrifice and simplicity can well set examples in the tent city, where millions are observing austerity in quest of salvation at the Kumbh.

Although these luxury vehicles can be spotted all over the sprawling 3200-hectare Kumbh Mela area and its 20 sectors, most are visible on Triveni Marg and Kali Marg that happen to be the VIP streets of the tent city.

It is here that large camps of the 13 akhadas have been set up. These luxury vehicles range from Mercedes Benz SUVs (approximate price range Rs 59-65 lakh), Pajero Sports (Rs 28.5-31 lakh), Ford Endeavour, Toyota Fortuners (Rs 27.5-33 lakh), Innovas (Rs 16-23.5 lakh), Mahindra Xylos (Rs 9.5-12 lakh) and Tata Safaris (Rs 10.90 lakh-15.98 lakh). They can be seen throughout the day near the camps, especially in the mornings and evenings when these seers meet visitors and disciples alike. Vehicles like Mahindra Scorpios (Rs 10-16.37 lakh), Boleros (Rs 7.45-9.12 lakh) and Honda City (Rs 9.75-13.74 lakh) are a dime a dozen here. During a visit to sectors 15, 16, 14 and 12 of the tent city, one is sure to come across these good looking but expensive vehicles.

One thing is common to most of these vehicles: their colour. Most seers prefer either white or saffron. A saint from Kanpur, Sant Chinmayanand, said that as these two colours were commonly associated with the seers, most prefer these hues. He conceded that it was owing to this very reason that he himself chose a white Ford Endeavour.