NEW DELHI: Indian Railways has made elaborate preparations for the 2025 Mahakumbh in Prayagraj and its connecting routes, amid expectations of nearly 40 crore people attending the event which begins on Monday.Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Sunday said that all arrangements and measures have been made to provide safe, seamless, and technologically advanced services for millions of pilgrims. Notably, Vaishnaw has inaugurated several key initiatives over the last three years to enhance the readiness of Indian Railways for the event. This included a dedicated Kumbh War Room at both the ministry level and at the Prayagraj station, CCTV cameras on all nearby stations, multilingual communication system, and additional ticket counters, among others.“The railway has invested about Rs 5,000 crore in developing infrastructure for the Mahakumbh 2025, which includes doubling rail lines, new platforms, and developing high-quality platforms,” Vaishnaw said.Vaishnaw noted that railway and state police are working together to ensure the safety of passengers. “The railway has created colour codes for the holding areas, and passengers simply have to follow the code of colours. Booklets in 22 languages have also been published for passengers,” he added.Officials said the Kumbh War Room will operate round the clock, with officials from various departments, including Operations, Commercial, RPF, Mechanical, Engineering, and Electrical, coordinating activities. “1,176 CCTV cameras have been installed at 9 stations in the Prayagraj region to provide live feeds for real-time monitoring. The War Room will facilitate effective coordination between district authorities and railway officials, ensuring immediate assistance and operational efficiency,” the railway minister said.’Meanwhile, the Railways has set up multilingual communication systems in 12 languages at Prayagraj, Naini, Cheoki, and Subedarganj stations to assist pilgrims. Announcements about train services are also being made in 12 languages across India.Regarding rail network enhancements, the railway minister said that 13,000 trains will operate during the Kumbh period, including 10,000 regular trains, 3,134 special trains (4.5 times more than the previous Kumbh), and 1,869 short-distance trains. The Railway Ministry is also running 706 long-distance trains, in addition to 559 ring trains.The Railways has spent Rs 5,000 crore over the past three years on Kumbh-related projects and has opened 554 ticketing counters, including 151 mobile UTS counters. Besides the 40 crore pilgrims expected during Maha Kumbh 2025, five crore pilgrims are also anticipated to visit on Mauni Amavasya alone.“These initiatives aim to ensure a safe, efficient, and technology-driven experience for pilgrims during Maha Kumbh 2025, underscoring Indian Railways’ commitment to cultural and infrastructural excellence,” remarked a senior official.
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