U.P. Theerth Yatra - Day 5 (Part 1)

Snanam at Prayagraj Triveni Ghat

We had read & heard from many sources that Prayagraj gets choked with traffic due to the Maha Kumbh rush. Hence, we thought that if we left early in the morning, we might not encounter this problem. So, at 2 a.m. sharp we checked out of our hotel and left for Prayagraj from Varanasi – approx. 130 kms away. The previous day, I had met a driver at Dasaswamedh ghat who had been to Prayagraj 3 times in the past fortnight.  He advised me that we should proceed to a car park called Jhusi parking from where we can easily go to the Triveni Sangham using a two-wheeler.

Accordingly, we set that as our destination on Google Maps and proceeded. Along the way, we encountered huge traffic on the main Grand Trunk Road. So, our driver decided to go from the service road below which runs parallel to the GT Road. Soon, this road also got choked due to excessive rush of vehicles. The main problem was caused by drivers going to the opposite road (incoming traffic) to avoid the rush, which caused blocks as the incoming vehicles could not proceed.

Somehow, our driver expertly managed to find gaps and took us close to Prayagraj by 5.15 a.m. which was fantastic and much better than what we had anticipated. One of his driver friends had already reached a particular parking place and sent him the location. Our driver decided to go to the same place so that the two of them could also go for a dip together. As we came close to that car park, we suddenly found ourselves stuck in traffic which seemed to be non-moving. This is because people parked their vehicles in the middle of the highway haphazardly leading to the virtual standstill situation. We were about 7 kms away from Prayagraj.

One two-wheeler guy came to our car and offered to drop us at Jhusi ghat for Rs. 500. Without thinking, we hurriedly took our bag and climbed on the bike and were on our way. In the beginning, the roads were risky as we were riding alongside a deep ditch on one side and parked cars on the side of the road. There were hardly 3-4 feet of muddy road on which we were going. Any error on part of the driver or a loss of balance could have sent us down the ditch and caused multiple injuries. Luckily nothing of that sort happened, and after a short while we came to normal roads alongside some fields. There was no traffic here and we went at brisk pace in the cold pre-dawn winter morning. I was holding our bag in one hand and was holding the bike seat with the other hand. Lalitha, who was behind was clinging on to my shoulder and desperately managing with the little seat space that she got.

After about 25 minutes of riding (maybe 7 / 8 kms), our bike guy dropped us at a point and said that the ghat is only 150 meters from there. We took his number and asked him to drop us back after we returned to the same spot from the Triveni dip. We then started walking along with hundreds of other pilgrims, none of whom had any idea of the directions. After walking some distance, one more biker came up to us and offered to drop us to the correct spot which he claimed was another 4-5 kms away. As we did not know where to proceed, we thought it is better to go along with him. He drove for about 15 minutes and dropped us at the Maha Kumbh mela area.

Here, we could see tens of thousands of pilgrims walking around and huge, massive tents / camps all over. There was no clear signages to indicate the way. Everyone we asked for directions gave us different answers. There were bhajans and holy songs blaring out of loudspeakers which made it difficult to hear ourselves. We were searching for the area from where boats were available. Some told us boats have been stopped since the stampede, some told us boats will be available only from 8 am onwards and some told us that for boats, we have to go some other place. We found a tea seller where we had tea (it was around 6.30 am) and asked her for directions.

Based on the tea seller’s directions, we proceeded by walking along with the huge crowds. After some time, we came to Bridge number 1 (makeshift bridge made by the administration to allow people to walk to the Triveni Sangham area). Here we were told that the first few bridges were only for people to return from the Sangham. So we walked all the way to Bridge number 12 and crossed over on foot to the other side. From here we had to walk a long distance (about 2 kms) to reach the main bathing area. On the way, we had some boiled corn from a vendor.

Once we reached the main bathing area, we found it completely packed. There were many temporary shelters for women to change clothes, but these were crowded and had huge queues. There was hardly any place to stand. We hurriedly did our sankalpam at one place and then took turns to go for our dip. There were light poles which were marked by numbers. So, Lalitha waited near one pole whose number was memorized by me to return to the same place. One group had spread a plastic sheet on the ground, and we placed our bags on it. I went through the crowd to reach the bathing area, which was also crowded and quite dirty with all kinds of trash, pooja articles, clothes etc. discarded there. At the outer edge of the bathing area, there were many boats which were not plying and looked more like a security / safety arrangement.

I had the customary 3 dips wearing my traditional Veshti & angavastram. I also collected some water in a bottle to take back and distribute to people who couldn’t make it to the Maha Kumbh. Then I came out and found Lalitha waiting at the place where I had left her. While she went for her dip, I quickly changed my clothes. By this time, it was nearly 7.45 a.m., and the Sun had risen & shining brightly. Lalitha decided not to change her clothes as the changing places were crowded and dirty.

After our Snanam

We then crossed over to the other side using Bridge number 2. It was very warm by now and we were feeling tired and were desperate to reach our car. Our driver sent us his location using Google Maps. As we came out, we saw a biker and asked him for a drop back. He quoted a huge price but as we had no options we agreed. We told him the name of the parking place and also described the place to him. After driving some distance, and enquiring with local people, we found that there were two parking lots with the same name. To drop us near our car park, he demanded extra charges. We agreed and he took us through inner roads and then through crowded & dusty main roads. Finally, he dropped us at a place and said he cannot proceed further as return will not be possible for him.

I called our driver and sent our location to him. He requested us to take another auto / bike to reach him as roads were blocked and it would take him a long time to come. So, we took another bike and rode the last 3.5 kms on the bike to reach our parking area. When we finally located our car at around 10.30 am and boarded it, we heaved a sigh of relief.

We immediately left for Chitrakoot which was 125 kms away. Here too some main roads were barricaded and our driver found inner roads to get past them. Along the way, we stopped at a roadside Dhaba to have lunch. The place looked dirty with flies and garbage, but we had no choice. We had a simple lunch of Roti, Daal and rice. The roads were not very good due to which we reached Chitrakoot only by around 4 p.m.

More about Chitrakoot in my next blog.