Maha Kumbh: Railway Minister Vaishnaw launches slew of initiatives for pilgrims

New Delhi: Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Sunday launched several key initiatives to enhance Indian Railways' readiness for the Maha Kumbh starting Monday in Prayagraj, with an aim to provide safe, seamless and technologically-advanced services for the millions of pilgrims expected to join the mega gathering over the next 45 days.

According to a press statement issued by the Railway Board, the initiatives include the launch of a 24x7 Kumbh War Room, CCTV cameras on all nearby stations, multilingual communication system, and additional ticket counters, among others.

"A dedicated war room at the Railway Board level has been inaugurated. It will operate 24x7, with officials from operations, commercial, RPF, mechanical, engineering, and electrical departments monitoring and coordinating the activities," Dilip Kumar, executive director for information and publicity, Railway Board, said.

"A total of 1,176 CCTV cameras have been installed at nine stations in the Prayagraj region to provide live feeds for real-time monitoring," he added.

According to officials, the war room will facilitate effective coordination between the district authorities and railway officials, ensuring immediate assistance and operational efficiency.

Kumar said a 12-language announcement system has also been inaugurated at Prayagraj, Naini, Cheoki, and Subedarganj stations to assist the pilgrims.

"A facilitation booklet in 22 languages has been made for disseminating essential information to the pilgrims," Kumar added.

Talking about passenger amenities in the Prayagraj region, Kumar said 10,000 regular trains, 3,134 special trains -- 4.5 times more than the previous Kumbh -- and 1,869 short-distance trains will operate during the Kumbh period.

"Besides, 706 long-distance trains and 559 ring trains will also be operated for the convenience of the pilgrims," he added.

Also, freight trains have been diverted to the dedicated freight corridors (DFC) to ensure smooth passenger train operations, officials said.

The Railway Board made an investment of Rs 5,000 crore over the past three years to develop the Kumbh-related projects, setting up facilities such as 48 platforms, 21 foot-over bridges, 23 permanent holding areas with a combined capacity of over 1 lakh pilgrims, 554 ticketing counters, including 151 mobile UTS counters, and 21 road over/under bridges to enhance road and rail mobility, among others.

"Infrastructure development worth Rs 3,700 crore has been done, which include the Banaras-Prayagraj (including the Ganga Bridge) and Phaphamau-Janghai doubling projects," Kumar said.

As many as 40 crore pilgrims are expected to visit the Maha Kumbh this year, of which five crore pilgrims are anticipated on Mauni Amavasya (January 29) alone.

"Special colour-coded tickets and barcode-enabled UTS systems have been introduced for smoother operations," Kumar said.

"These initiatives aim to ensure a safe, efficient, and technology-driven experience for the pilgrims, underscoring Indian Railways' commitment to cultural and infrastructural excellence," he added.