Railways invested Rs 5,000 crore to improve infrastructure in Prayagraj : Ashwini Vaishnaw

New Delhi: Indian Railways has invested Rs 5,000 crore in the last five years to improve railway infrastructure in and around Prayagraj for Maha Kumbh 2025, Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said here on Tuesday.

The railways can evacuate more than 1 crore people in a day as compared to 40 lakh earlier. Holding areas have been made for devotees at Prayagraj on occassion of the Maha Kumbh where they can wait before going towards railway platforms, Vaishnaw told media persons.

The railway stations, movement of trains and crowd management at stations and holding areas are being monitored at a special war room set up at Delhi as well as Prayagraj.

Separately, the railway official said that a total of 10,000 trains, including 3,134 special services, have been deployed to cater to the influx of devotees. These comprise of 1,869 short-distance trains, 706 long-distance trains, and 559 ring trains.

“Freight trains have been diverted to Dedicated Freight Corridors (DFC) to ensure smooth passenger train operations. An investment of Rs. 5,000 crore has been made over the past three years for Kumbh-related projects,” a senior Railway Ministry official said.

A total of 1,176 CCTV cameras across nine key stations in the Prayagraj region under North Central Railways (NCR) have been installed to provide live feeds for real-time monitoring.

Enhancing accessibility, a 12-language announcement system has been introduced at Prayagraj, Naini, Cheoki, and Subedarganj stations. Additionally, a 22-language booklet is available at these stations to assist pilgrims from diverse linguistic backgrounds.

The railways has also completed major infrastructure projects, such as the Banaras-Prayagraj doubling project (including the Ganga Bridge) and the Phaphamau-Janghai doubling project, costing Rs 3,700 crore.