According to government statistics, an average of 1.44 crore individuals take a holy bath each day.
Lakhs of pilgrims have flocked to Prayagraj for the Maha Kumbh, causing severe traffic jams in the city over the past few days. There have been reports of kilometer-long traffic bottlenecks at numerous entry points to Prayagraj, with some devotees stranded on the road for up to 30 hours.
Over the weekend, about 12 lakh vehicles arrived in Prayagraj, with an additional 4 million pilgrims heading for a holy dip at Sangam. The overwhelming flood of devotees created unprecedented traffic jams on all roadways leading to Prayagraj. Heavy traffic was also seen along the Madhya Pradesh-Bihar border.
The authorities have designated the whole Kumbh area a ‘no vehicle zone’ ahead of Maghi Purnima Snan on February 12 to handle the city’s enormous traffic. According to government statistics, an average of 1.44 crore individuals take a holy bath each day.
Vehicles were stalled on Madhya Pradesh highways on Monday, with kilometre-long traffic jams in areas like as Jabalpur, Seoni, Katni, Maihar, Satna, and Rewa. MP Chief Minister Mohan Yadav asked devotees to avoid travelling to Prayagraj for the next few days due to severe traffic.
The severe traffic is primarily due to lakhs of pilgrims flocking to Kumbh for Mauni Amavasya on February 12. In a post on X, CM Yadav stated that food and lodging arrangements had been provided for the devotees who were stuck in Rewa district. Rewa is located 130 kilometers from Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh.
Uttar Pradesh Police Chief Prashant Kumar stated that the unprecedented size of the gathering is putting the authorities’ management capacities to the test: “Mahakumbh 2025 is seeing the largest congregation of humanity in history. With over 40 lakh pilgrims already taking a sacred bath at the Sangam and millions more arriving every day, regulating the huge movement of people and vehicles is a problem that no city, administration, or police force in the world has ever faced before.”
Despite the bottleneck, police officers ranging from constables to senior officials are working frantically to keep traffic moving. “Managing this ocean of humanity is a Herculean task, and every police officer on duty is displaying unmatched dedication to making Mahakumbh 2025 a safe and seamless experience,” stated the district police chief.
- Authorities are currently increasing attempts to restore normalcy. Railway stations have established emergency crowd control measures, while local taxi, auto, and e-rickshaw drivers are implementing a one-way traffic plan to reduce congestion. These synchronized initiatives aim to gradually restore traffic circulation to near-normal levels, notwithstanding the ongoing rise in pilgrims.
According to reports, these traffic bottlenecks range in length from 10 to 300 kilometers. However, there is no formal confirmation of the same. According to eyewitnesses, all highways heading to Prayagraj are jam-packed with vehicles. The Sunday holiday exacerbated the problem, resulting in traffic bottlenecks. People from adjacent areas intended to take a dip on Sunday and return in the evening, but were obliged to stay owing to a persistent traffic bottleneck.
- Vehicles moved at a crawl for approximately 25 kilometers on roadways connecting Prayagraj to Varanasi, Lucknow, Kanpur, and Rewa. Pilgrims, both arriving and leaving, were stranded for hours.
Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party head Akhilesh Yadav slammed the Uttar Pradesh government on Monday for the heavy traffic congestion in Prayagraj, stating it has resulted in a shortage of critical commodities and inconvenienced devotees attending the Maha Kumbh Mela. Yadav slammed Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, saying no responsible minister or individual is seen monitoring the situation in Prayagraj.
