Mahakumbh

Nagar, 18 Feb (HS): Maha Kumbh 2025 in Prayagraj has already witnessed an

astonishing 53 crore sacred baths, making it the largest religious gathering in

the world. With millions of devotees arriving daily, the Indian Railways is

playing a pivotal role in managing the seamless transportation of pilgrims.

A

massive logistical effort with Rs. 5,000 Cr work done in the last 3 years for

Maha Kumbh area has been undertaken to ensure a smooth experience for all

travelers. This includes among other things, upgraded railway stations, over

13,000 trains scheduled to be run, and advanced crowd management systems. Have

a look at how the Indian Railways is facilitating this grand spiritual

spectacle:

1.

Massive Railway Operations for Maha Kumbh 2025

Train

Diversions for Seamless Travel

All

goods trains have been diverted in the Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) to

prioritize passenger movement.

200

rakes with train sets or engines on both sides are deployed to avoid shunting

operations.

Unprecedented

number of Train Services

13,000

trains were planned till 26th February 2025, out of which 12,583 had already

run by 16th February 2025.

IR

handling the Peak Passenger Flow: Since 13th January 2025, 3.09 crore pilgrims

have been handled by IR in the Prayagraj Kumbh area. On 17th 18.60 lakhs

passenger and 16th February 2025, 18.48 lakh passengers handling, one of the highest passenger

movements in last two days.

Other

significant peak dates:

15th

February: 14.76 lakh passengers

12th

February: 17 lakh passengers

10

th &

11 January : More than 14 lakh passengers

30th

January: 17.57 lakh passengers

29th

January: 27 lakh passengers

28th

January: 14.15 lakhs passengers

14th

January: 13.87 lakh passengers

2.

Passenger Facilities at Railway Stations

To

accommodate the massive influx of devotees, Indian Railways has ensured the

following:

Improved

Infrastructure

9

railway stations with second entries to manage crowd flow.

48

platforms (PF) & 21 Foot Over Bridges (FoB) for smooth passenger movement.

Indian

Railways has installed 1,186 CCTV cameras across nine stations in the Prayagraj

Mela region as part of a comprehensive surveillance system.

23

permanent holding areas to manage waiting passengers.

Announcements

in 12 languages at major stations:

Prayagraj,

Naini, Cheoki, and Subedarganj

Ticketing

Enhancements

554

ticketing arrangements, including 151 mobile UTS ticketing points, to

streamline the ticketing process.

3.

Major Railway Infrastructure Upgrades

The

Indian Railways has invested heavily in infrastructure to ensure seamless

travel:

Rs.

3,700 crore investment for major railway infrastructure projects, including:

Banaras-Prayagraj

rail doubling, including a new Ganga Bridge.

Phaphamau-Janghai

rail doubling to increase train capacity.

21

new Road Over Bridges (ROB) and Road Under Bridges (RUB) to enhance road and

rail mobility.

Color-Coded

System for Easy Passenger Navigation

Colour

coding of Yatri Ashryas, holding areas and tickets has done for easy

identification and direction-wise segregation of passengers:

Red:

Lucknow, Ayodhya and Varanasi

Blue:

DDU, Sasaram, Patna

Yellow:

Manikpur, Jhansi, Satna, Katni (Madhya Pradesh area)

Green:

Kanpur, Agra, Delhi

4.

Robust Security & Crowd Management

Given

the high volume of travelers, railway authorities have implemented extensive

security measures:

Control

Centers established at multiple levels:

Station

level, Division level, Zonal level, and Railway Board level.

Security

Deployment

13,000

Railway Protection Force (RPF) personnel.

10,000

Government Railway Police (GRP) & paramilitary staff stationed at key

locations.

3,000+

running staff assigned to ensure smooth train operations.

With

53 crore snans already performed at Maha Kumbh 2025, the Indian Railways is

ensuring that millions of devotees can travel safely and comfortably. From

special trains to advanced crowd control measures, the railway network is

efficiently handling the world’s largest religious gathering.

Hindusthan Samachar / Abhishek Awasthi