Maghi Purnima Amrit ‘Snan’: Over 73 Lakh Devotees Take A Holy Dip In Prayagraj

Over 73 lakh devotees took a holy dip at the Sangam till 6 am on 12 February on the auspicious occasion of Maghi Purnima during the Maha Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh (UP), Hindustan Times reported.

UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath monitored the event since 4 am at the war room in his official residence in Lucknow. Director General of Police (DGP), UP, Prashant Kumar; the state Principal Secretary (Home) Sanjay Prasad and officials of CM Secretariat were also present at the war room.

Kumbh Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Rajesh Dwivedi said, “The movement of devotees is going on smoothly and we are taking care of all [crowd] pressure points.”

"We have made elaborate arrangements during the previous ‘snan’ on Basant Panchami too. Our arrangements have been further augmented this time,” he said.

Talking about security arrangements in place for the ‘snan’, the SSP said, “More deployment has been done at all the pressure points. Along with that, we are briefing people to ensure a smooth movement."

The UP CM greeted everyone on the holy bathing festival.

“Heartiest greetings to all the revered saints, religious leaders, Kalpvasis and devotees who have come for the holy bath at the sacred Triveni in Maha Kumbh 2025, Prayagraj. May everyone's life be filled with happiness, prosperity and good fortune by the grace of Lord Shri Hari. May Maa Ganga, Maa Yamuna and Maa Saraswati fulfill everyone's wishes,” he said in a social media post.

According to officials, elaborate arrangements have been made to ensure that the devotees take the sacred bath without any hassle.

The fair area has been declared a “no vehicle zone’ from 4 am on 11 February, while the entire city will become a no-vehicle zone from 5 pm onwards the following day, with an exemption for emergency and essential services, the district authorities said.

To avoid traffic chaos, designated parking lots have been marked for public and private vehicles. Prayagraj Additional Director-General (ADG) of Police Bhanu Bhaskar said special forces have been deployed at all places where crowd management becomes challenging.

The special traffic plan will remain in force till the completion of the ritual to ensure safe evacuation of devotees from the fair area in case of any emergency.

With the Maghi Purnima bath, the month-long Kalpavas will also end and around 10 lakh ‘Kalpvasis’ will start leaving the Maha Kumbh. The UP administration has requested them to follow traffic rules and use only authorised parking spaces.