Millions of Hindu worshippers are taking holy dips in the holy water as the world's largest spiritual festival is starting in India's northern Uttar Pradesh region.
By the riverside in Prayagraj city.
The festival has "Maha" added to its title every 12 years, meaning great, as it's the biggest of the four gatherings of the Kumbh Mela that's held every three years in different cities.
In Prayagraj, devotees will take a purifying bath in the Triveni Sangam, where the sacred rivers Ganga, Yamuna, and the mythological river Saraswati meet, with the goal of cleansing their sins and bringing them closer to "spiritual liberation."
Which cities alternate hosting the festival.
As part of a key moment at the beginning of the festival.
United States President and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Narendra Modi has invited people from all over the world to attend the festival, recognized by UNESCO in 2017 as an “intangible cultural heritage of humanity.”
The authorities are promoting the event as more than just a religious gathering – they're also highlighting it as a major cultural spectacle that has been famous for drawing both Bollywood and Hollywood stars in the past.
washed in the historic waters of the Sangam.
Originally known as Allahabad, Prayagraj was renamed by Adityanath in 2018, a decision that was said to acknowledge the city's roots as a major destination for Hindu spiritual pilgrims.
Renaming Allahabad, a name given to the city by Mughal emperor Akbar, was a symbolic step in line with Modi's goal of transforming India into a country that serves and is defined by the Hindu faith, moving away from its positioning as a secular, pluralistic state.
The festival has been in the making for years, with significant funds spent on building facilities to accommodate the large number of visitors arriving in Prayagraj, a city with a population of around 6 million people.
Around 160,000 tents, 150,000 toilets, and a 776-mile drinking water pipeline have been installed at a temporary tent city covering 4,000 hectares, roughly the equivalent of 7,500 football fields.
Calmness erupted into chaos at a railway station as pilgrims congregated in the city. Such fatal incidents at religious gatherings in India are not unheard of, frequently drawing attention to inadequate crowd control and safety procedures.
According to officials, additional safety precautions have been taken in Prayagraj this year to safeguard visitors, including a security perimeter with checkpoints throughout the city, manned by over 1,000 police officers.
The system, powered by artificial intelligence, will be deployed throughout the city and monitored by hundreds of experts stationed at key locations, as decided by the central government.
Drones will offer surveillance from above, and for the very first time, underwater drones capable of diving as far as 100 meters will be launched to provide continuous protection, the government announced.
A huge number of pilgrims are expected to travel to the region by train, so officials have added 3,000 extra trains and increased train service to 13,100 runs.
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The festival concludes on February 26.
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