'Sadhus' take a holy dip at the Sangam on the occasion of 'Makar Sankranti' festival, during the Maha Kumbh Mela 2025, in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh on January 14, 2025. (Inset: UP CM Yogi Adityanath).
Credit: PTI Photos
Spirituality and astrology, culture and religion, tradition and modern-day technology, it all fused into one in the confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati in Prayagraj.
More than 40 crore people, many from abroad, are expected over 45 days in the Maha Kumbh Mela being held after 12 years. Besides, seers claim the celestial permutations and combinations for the event are taking place after 144 years, making the occasion even more auspicious for the faithful.
And so a sea of people converged in Prayagraj for the fabled Maha Kumbh. Ash-smeared sadhus from their abode in the Himalayas, the religious from across the country and abroad, and those just curious to take in the sights and sounds of the biggest religious spectacle of all, the Maha Kumbh beckoned them all.
However, it is not just spirituality that the mela has to offer—it is likely to generate a staggering revenue of Rs 2 lakh crore for the Uttar Pradesh government's coffers, according to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath himself.
NDTV reports Adityanath as saying that the Ardh Kumbh Mela held in 2019 generated close to Rs 1.2 lakh crore revenue. Around 24 crore people had taken part in the event.
With the expected number of pilgrims almost doubling this time around, it can be said that Adityanath's estimates are not too speculative.
On the other hand, news agency IANS has taken industry estimates into consideration to say that if among the 40 crore expected attendees, each individual spends at least Rs 5,000, then the revenue from the same can reach Rs 2 lakh crore.
It believes that if per-person expenditure rises to Rs 10,000, then the UP government would be pocketing Rs 4 lakh crore as revenue and this could boost the state's nominal as well as real GDP by 1 per cent.
With PTI inputs