BHOPAL: The killer stampede at the Mahakumbh in Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj has left thousands of pilgrims stranded in the adjoining Rewa district of Madhya Pradesh.
With the entry of vehicles from Rewa being stopped by authorities in Prayagraj district after the stampede, thousands of pilgrims from MP and western and southern India remained stranded there.
The main Chakghat highway which connects Rewa with Prayagaraj witnessed a traffic jam spanning up to around 12 kilometres, with around 1500 buses and 4000-5000 cars and other four wheelers stuck in long multiple queues.
Apart from the buses and four wheelers halted on the highway for around 10 hours (4 am to 2 pm), around 500 buses and 1500-plus four wheelers were parked in multiple holding areas created in large spaces in Rampur Karchulian and Mangawan areas of Rewa district and Bela area of adjoining Satna district of MP only.
“We had arranged doctors, food, medicines and water to ensure that pilgrims, whose vehicles were stuck in the jam for around 10 hours, had places to rest and other necessary facilities. Arrangements for their safe rest and stay were made in schools and other places, besides sheds and tents in villages located alongside the highway,” Rewa district police superintendent Vivek Singh told The New Indian Express.
Some voluntary organizations and local outfits too had put up camps to ensure food supply to the stranded pilgrims in Rewa district.
The movement of vehicles started moving at a snail’s pace after the traffic in Prayagraj started easing. Even seven hours after the traffic started moving into Prayagraj district, the vehicles were still progressing very slowly.
According to official sources in Rewa, while a large number of vehicles boarding pilgrims bound to the Mahakumbh were from MP, a substantial number of other vehicles were from western states, like Gujarat and Maharashtra and southern states like Telangana, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
One of the pilgrims, Deepak Shringvi, who was part of a group from Pune, said, “We waited in Rewa for around 12 hours before progressing towards Prayagraj. We entered Rewa at 3 am and are finally slowly now moving towards Prayagraj, on the opening of traffic. People in MP have offered us all the help they can, particularly food and water, besides a place to rest.”
A large number of stranded pilgrims took a detour towards another famous pilgrimage town – Chitrakoot in MP.
According to official sources, an unprecedented over 50 lakh pilgrims took holy dips in the sacred Mandakini river in Chitrakoot on the festival of Mauni Amavasya, giving a Mini Kumbh look to the famous pilgrimage linked to Lord Ram’s life.
Following the situation in Prayagraj, the authorities in Chitrakoot area of Satna district had been put on maximum alert, in the wake of a rush of devotees since the early morning hours.
The entire religious town of Chitrakoot was divided into nine security zones, each being supervised by a magistrate level officer and large deployment of security was ensured to prevent untoward incidents.
