Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Sunday (December 8) announced that the Indian Railways would operate approximately 13,000 trains, including 3,000 special services, to accommodate devotees attending the Maha Kumbh Mela. The Maha Kumbh Mela will begin on January 13, coinciding with Paush Purnima, and will conclude on February 26, marking Mahashivratri.
The Union Minister, who traveled by train from Varanasi to Prayagraj to assess the railways’ preparations, estimated that between 1.5 to 2 crore passengers would travel to the city by train during the event.
During his visit, Vaishnaw inspected several stations across the Northeast Railway, Northern Railway, and North Central Railway zones in Prayagraj. He also reviewed the newly constructed bridge over the Ganga, which is set to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “This new bridge over the Ganga has been built after 100 years,” he remarked.
The Minister highlighted improvements at key stations, stating, “I personally inspected five stations. The holding areas at these stations, where the devotees will be able to sit till their trains arrive, are very good. Colour coding has been used in the holding areas and tickets so that the devotees can reach the right platform.”
Vaishnaw launches mobile UTS in Prayagraj for Maha Kumbh
Vaishnaw also introduced the mobile Unreserved Ticket System (UTS) for the first time at Prayagraj, a feature previously used during the Rath Yatra in Puri.
A
Noting significant infrastructure upgrades, the Minister explained that the railway track between Prayagraj and Varanasi has been doubled, with the Phaphamau-Janghai section also expanded. Additionally, new entrances have been constructed at key stations including Jhansi, Phaphamau, Prayagraj, Subedarganj, Naini, and Cheoki.
Control rooms set up for real-time monitoring
To ensure efficient operations, control rooms have been set up at each station, transmitting live updates to a central master control room at Prayagraj station. CCTV feeds from the Maha Kumbh Nagar and local police stations will also be monitored here.
Vaishnaw emphasised that lessons learned from the Ram Mandir consecration in Ayodhya and the Rath Yatra in Puri were applied to improve infrastructure and crowd management at Prayagraj station. He noted that over 23 holding areas and 48 platforms have been established, alongside 21 new foot overbridges and 554 ticketing kiosks.
The Indian Railways has invested more than Rs 5,000 crore over the past two years in preparation for the Maha Kumbh Mela, Vaishnaw added. He was accompanied during the review by Railway Board CEO Satish Kumar and other senior officials.
