A delegation of 118 diplomats, including the Heads of Mission, their spouses, and diplomats from 77 countries, will visit the Mahakumbh in Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj on Saturday. The Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, in the weekly media presser on Friday, confirmed the visit, saying the foreign delegates will visit the Mahakumbh on February 1. Responding to a question on diplomats visiting the event, Jaisawal said, "Yes, diplomats will be visiting Kumbh tomorrow."
UP CM conducts aerial survey
Meanwhile UP CM Yogi Adityanath conducted the aerial survey of the of the Maha Kumbh area on Saturday. This comes prior to the visit of foreign delegates to Prayagraj.
Kumbh Mela 2025 began in India on January 13 with millions of devotees taking holy dips in Uttar Pradesh's Parayagraj as they seek absolution of their sins. The Kumbh Mela gains prominence as it comes every 12 years, making it a rare occasion in Hindu culture.
This year's Kumbh Mela is special as the Mahakumbh Mela takes place after 144 years, which marks the 12th Kumbh Mela with a special celestial arrangement of the moon, sun, and Jupiter. The religious event in Prayagraj gained the limelight from the international media as well, as they hailed its grandeur and the scale at which it is organised.
Thousands of people from South Africa to flock Mahakumbh Mela
Moreover, thousands of people from South Africa are expected to flock to the Maha Kumbh Mela before it ends on February 26, the news agency PTI reported.
“In just the first few days since the Maha Kumbh was inaugurated on January 13, more than a hundred visas have been issued for people wanting to attend the event, with scores more using their OCI cards to attend the same,” PTI quotes Consul General of India in Johannesburg, Mahesh Kumar, as saying.
It is to be noted that the next Mahakumbh will occur in 2169, which makes it rare and special, drawing devotees from different parts of the world.
Swami Viprananda Maharaj from the Ramakrishna Centre of South Africa said it would be very difficult for somebody from South Africa who has not had an experience of such a large gathering to even conceive of what the Kumbh Mela is.
(With inputs from agencies)
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