Overview
- The 44-day congregation runs from January 3 to February 15, with major bathing days on Makar Sankranti (January 14–15), Mauni Amavasya (January 18), Basant Panchami (January 23) and Maghi Purnima (February 1).
- A large security grid is in place with 17 police stations, thousands of personnel, teams from NDRF, RAF and PAC, and more than 1,500 CCTV cameras monitored through the Integrated Command and Control Centre.
- Pilgrim facilities have been expanded, including about 10,000 feet of ghats, nine pontoon bridges, over 25,000 changing rooms, two on-site hospitals with 50 ambulances, a Mela Seva app, bike taxis and extensive fire safety coverage.
- Kalpavas began alongside Paush Purnima, with officials counting roughly 5 lakh Kalpvasis and a new 950-bigha Prayagwal Nagar set up to accommodate month-long residents.
- Police have marked 24 sensitive days for heightened crowd pressure and plan extra deployments and diversions, as authorities project total footfall between 12 and 15 crore with the heaviest turnout expected on Mauni Amavasya.