Author: Sunil Kataria
Publication: The Hindu Group (www.egroups.com)
Date: January 7, 2001
Allahabad, India, Jan 7 (Reuters)
- Hindu pilgrims swarmed to a spot on the holy Ganges river in India on
Sunday as officials fretted over safety ahead of what is expected to be
the world's biggest gathering of human beings.
The "Maha Kumbh Mela" or Grand Pitcher
Festival, which is held around once every 12 years, is expected to see
more than 70 million people taking dips in the Ganges over 42 days from
January 9.
Some 30 million people are expected
to bathe at the confluence of the Yamuna and Ganges rivers near the northern
city of Allahabad on January 24 alone, when an auspicious new moon will
appear.
Allahabad, which is located some
650 km (405 miles) southeast of Delhi in the state of Uttar Pradesh, has
a normal population of around one million people.
"We know it's an awesome task. And
we are prepared for any eventuality," Sadakant (eds: one word), Mela Commissioner
in charge of preparations, told Reuters.
"We have worked out the crowd movement
in such a way that they will not by allowed to swell beyond a limit at
any given point," he added.
The Guinness Book of World Records
described the last Maha Kumbh Mela in 1989, when around 50 million people
attended, as the largest ever gathering of human beings for a single purpose."
There were no major problems at
the last festival but around 500 people died during the event in the mid
1950s.
Smaller versions of the festival
are held every three years in three other towns along the Ganges.
Officials must cope with fears of
stampedes and managing people getting lost in the milling millions, as
well as the logistical nightmares of provision of food, water and other
essential services.
But the faithful shrug off the risks
as they search for a bath which will purify them of their sins.
CELESTIAL BATTLES
Legend says gods and demons fought
a celestial war, spilling heavenly nectar at Allahabad.
The pilgrims will mainly aim for
the "Sangam," or confluence point, where they believe the Yamuna and Ganges
rivers are joined by an underground mythical river, named Saraswati after
the Hindu goddess of learning.
Among the faithfull will be people
from rare religious sects including seers in saffron robes and naked "sadhus"
(holy men) with ash spread over their bodies.
For devout Hindus, the Kumbh Mela
is an occasion to celebrate tales and beliefs handed through the generations.
"I am sure there is something very
powerful and very pure about the Kumbh," pilgrim Venu Gopal told Reuters.
"It has been on for centuries, there must be something special about it."
In a political sideshow, Hindu activists
plan to announce a date for the start of construction of a controversial
temple on the site of a mosque which was destroyed in 1992 by Hindu zealots
in the northern town of Ayodhya.
SWARMS ARRIVE
Hundreds of pilgrims have already
begun pouring into the festival area, braving chilly winds and fog.
"I have come here to achieve salvation,"
said 65-year-old woman Brahamani Devi, who arrived from the neighbouring
Hindu kingdom of Nepal.
In a more worldly vein, Ram Kishore
Das Ramayani, a holy man from downriver Varanasi, grumbled about the arrangements.
"It's freezing here," he declared.
"And no blankets, no arrangements for fire to warm us, or facilities like
water supply, toilets and proper roads... Everything is pathetic, compared
with what we heard."
But officials reel off a string
of statistics to show how hard they have been working, spending some 1.5
billion rupees ($32 million) on the event.
More than half a million tents and
20,000 makeshift toilets have been have been erected, while some 20,000
policemen and 8,000 sweepers have been deployed in the spruced up town.
Security has been a worry, especially
with concerns over possible attacks by separatist guerrillas.
"We have factored in the feedback
from the army intelligence, central intelligence agencies, police etcetera,"
Sadakant said. "We are taking security very seriously."
