The Maha Kumbh Mela in Uttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj, believed to be the world’s biggest religious gathering, has unfortunately turned out to be deadly and disastrous for the pilgrims. With at least 30 people killed in a stampede that took place on Mauni Amavasya, no action has been taken against those in charge of the administration whether at local or higher levels.
With reports emerging that hundreds are missing, death toll could be higher and that the stampede took place not at one place but three, it’s high time that the Yogi Adityanath-led UP government should come out in the public domain, apologise to the people and owe up to the mistake that led to this incident.
Instead, the UP authorities have indulged themselves in threatening journalists of arrest for merely reporting from the incident site. The administration didn’t provide clear information regarding the stampede in the first place and then turned to doing- what seems to be a coverup of the catastrophe.
With all the claims of heightened safety and security measures in place, from AI tools to CCTV cameras, nothing seemed to work enough to control and manage the crowd. The Kumbh management and the UP administration miserably failed in crowd management. There was poor planning and systemic gaps in terms of preparedness especially when over 400 million people were expected to arrive in the city during the entire Kumbh Mela. The UP government should be transparent enough to release the CCTV footages of the stampede, as it claims the entire Kumbh area was camera monitored.
The major backlash it’s facing is on serving the VVIP and not the masses, and rightly so. With VIP visits happening, the routes got cut short for the common people. The authorities are under radar for prioritising the VVIPs and not looking after the safety of the pilgrims. The coverup exercise in the mainstream TV media and newspapers is well managed via funding.
However, if Yogi Adityanath was getting the credit for holding the Kumbh Mela successfully before the tragedy struck the Sangam in the holy city of Prayagraj, he should also take the blame for the stampede deaths and ensure that justice is served, compensation is announced, injured are treated for free and those missing are identified and sent back home. It’s the time to reflect on the loopholes and fix them and make heads roll for the mismanagement of Kumbh Mela which had the world’s attention. It’s definitely not the time to play a coverup.
Justification of deaths have also started pouring in. With Bageshwar Baba saying “victims didn’t die, they got Moksha” and the ruling dispensation labelling critics who ask tough questions and seek accountability as those who are “politicising” the tragedy, it’s only getting worse.
The UP government should understand that people’s lives are as precious as any other VIP who’s visiting Kumbh to take a dip in Sangam. The devotees didn’t embark for Prayagraj only to lose their lives because the administration failed to do its duty. It’s a man-made disaster and heads must roll at the highest levels.
