Maha Kumbh | 28 strategic points, medical teams on alert: Officials gear up for 'incident-free' Basant Panchami Amrit Snan

Lucknow: As the devotees started to throng the Sangam for the third Amrit Snan on the occasion of Basant Panchami on Monday, the Mela administration is gearing up to ensure an incident-free ‘Snan’ in which over three crore devotees are expected to take the holy dip.

According to the sources, the authorities have set up 28 ‘strategic points’ on the Sangam bank where the jawans of the Rapid Action Force (RAF) and paramilitary force will be deployed. These strategic points were considered to be sensitive from the point of view of the crowd.

‘’Our focus will be to make sure that crowds of devotees don’t gather on the Sangam and the devotees leave the spot immediately after taking the bath,’’ said an official of the Mela administration on Sunday.

The Mahakumbh area has already been declared a ‘no vehicle zone’ and all VVIP passes have been cancelled.

Taking lessons from Wednesday’s incident in which 30 devotees were killed and dozens others injured, the administration has decided to keep more pontoon bridges open during the Amrit Snan to allow smooth arrival and departure of the devotees.

Medical teams have been put on the alert. ‘’The doctors in the entire Prayagraj division will be on the alert on Basant Panchami,’’ the official added.

Meanwhile, devotees have started arriving at the sangam for the third Amrit Snan. Large crowds of devotees were seen on the roads leading to the Sangam on Sunday. The Amrit Snan was expected to start later in the night on Sunday.