The Uttar Pradesh government has asked the Centre to bear half the Rs 4,200 crore cost of the Ardh Kumbh.
In an attempt to make Kumbh Mela of Prayagraj (Allahabad), an epicentre of pan-Asian cultures, the Centre has invited countries across the globe to participate in the two-month festivities that commence a month from now, on January 15.
To promote the mammoth event on the global stage, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) arranged on Saturday for over 70 Delhi-based foreign missions to witness the preparations of the mega pilgrimage where 15 crore people are expected to congregate and for which over Rs 4,200-crore will have been spent.
Minister of State General V K Singh led the delegation of diplomats. "More than 70 Heads of Missions based in Delhi are on board a special flight to Prayagraj to witness Kumbh Mela in the making, Massive preparations are underway for the UNESCO inscribed 'Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity' festival of peace & harmony," Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar had said earlier in the day.
Dean of Diplomatic Corps Hans Dannenberg Castellanos, who represents more than 150 foreign missions in the country, said, "The visit was extremely well organised by both the UP government as well as the MEA. Kudos... for having the vision [to get us to] personally experience what so many of our citizens come to India to experience."
The Uttar Pradesh government has asked the Centre to bear half the Rs 4,200 crore cost of the Ardh Kumbh. The last full Kumbh Mela, in 2013, cost less than a third of the amount estimated for the upcoming event.
Ferrying people
To ferry people to the site of the pilgrimage, Triveni Sangam (confluence of three holy rivers), the Inland Waterways Authority of India has set up four floating terminals — at Kilaghat, Saraswati Ghat, Naini Bridge and Sujawan Ghat. Mini cruises CL Kasturba and SL Kamla and small ships will also be deployed for movement.
A fairway with navigational aid will be operated between Prayagraj and Varanasi. Five temporary jetties at Chatnag, Sirsa, Sitamarhi, Vindhyachal and Chunar have also been set up for embarking and disembarking passengers.
The government is also planning to ferry vessels and commercial ships from Prayagraj to New Delhi in the Yamuna.
As a part of development of the National Waterways-1 (Allahabad to Haldia), the IWAI is attempting to make the Allahabad-Varanasi stretch of the Ganga navigable. It is working on providing a sufficient draft of 1.0 m for the entire channel in the river between Allahabad and Varanasi. This will ensure seamless and safe movement of vessels.
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