PRAYAGRAJ: Undeterred by the stampede of the day before, flow of devotees continued at Maha Kumbh Thursday, a day after Mauni Amavasya. More than 1.7 crore devotees had bathed at Sangam by Thursday afternoon, and the number reached around 2 crore by end of the day. The mela administration continued to operate shuttle buses and remained on alert while ensuring that devotees did not face any inconvenience.
Since early Thursday, several devotees waiting at the Ashray Sthal (large waiting areas), holding areas, and open grounds, started moving towards the mela area. Unlike Wednesday, for those who chose to walk it was a comparatively straight road towards the mela, without any diversions. The same enthusiasm was seen on the faces of the devotees even though many of them had seen, or at least heard of, the unfortunate stampede.
“Ganga maiya sabko bulawat hain to sabhi jaa rahe hain, unki marzi ke bina koi nahi jaa sakat hai (It is mother Ganga who is calling us all, no one can go unless she wishes so),” said 66-year-old Kamlai from Kaushambi in UP.
However, on Thursday, the number of devotees returning from the mela and moving towards railway stations outnumbered those heading towards it. All roads in localities like Civil Lines, Katra Shivkuti, or those in old city like Kydganj, Mutthiganj, and Bahadurganj, saw a huge turnout of devotees, but there was enough space for everyone. While some managed to hitch a ride on trolley-rickshaw or with local bikers, many arrived in shuttle buses that administration deployed at all temporary bus stands at entry points to the city as well as at railway stations.
Umesh, one of the devotees undeterred by the stampede, said, “Now that I left my house with the wish of bathing in Sangam along with my elderly parents, I am not going back, whether it is a stampede or something else. Maa Ganga will protect us all.”
Mukesh Bhagat, who travelled from Nagpur with his family, said that while he found it difficult to reach Kila Ghat from the Arail side due to the large crowd, the moment he took a dip in the sacred river he felt a surge of new energy. Similarly, Ghanshyam, who arrived from Panipat to bathe at Sangam Nose, said participating in this holy event was not just the result of his own deeds but also the blessings and virtues of his ancestors.