Several Kolkata residents reach Prayagraj, take exception to Mrityu Kumbh remark

Kolkata/Prayagraj: Kolkata-based businessman Uttam Mondal along with his wife and friends reached Prayagraj on Sunday night to take a holy dip at Sangam while city resident Debabrata Pattrea admitted his purpose to visit the Maha Kumbh is out of "sheer curiosity" and not any religious instinct.However, the two Bengali men from the 'City of Joy' concurred in their disapproval of the language used by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee recently to underline safety concern at the mega religious gathering in the wake of a stampede there.

Banerjee had on February 18 asserted that the Maha Kumbh had turned into a "Mrityu Kumbh" due to incidents of stampede, claiming that the actual toll was suppressed by authorities.

At least 30 people died and 60 were injured in a stampede in Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj last month, while 18 people lost their lives in a recent stampede at an overcrowded New Delhi railway station.

"I will not call it a Maha Kumbh. It has now become a 'Mrityu Kumbh'. It is like a death pit. I respect the Maha Kumbh, I respect Ganga Maa. However, there was no planning for the event," Banerjee said during an address in the West Bengal Assembly.

The 45-day religious congregation, which began on January 13, culminates on February 26. Over 60 crore people have taken a holy dip in the Triveni Sangam since it started, according to data shared by the Uttar Pradesh government.

However, people from different parts of the country and many from outside continue to throng Mahakumbh Nagar, most seeking a holy dip at the confluence of rivers Ganga, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati, believing it will cleanse their sins.

On Sunday late evening, two Prayagraj-bound flights departing from Kolkata airport saw nearly full occupancy as passengers from the West Bengal capital, Andhra Pradesh, and other places stood in queues in great anticipation of the next morning.

"This is my first visit to the Kumbh Mela, my wife and my friends are travelling with me. We are going to take a holy dip at Sangam. I am feeling very happy," Mondal told PTI just before boarding a flight at 7:30 pm from Kolkata.

Asked about the remarks made by the chief minister, he said, the West Bengal leader "should have thought about it".

Near him, a trio of women -- mother and two daughters -- took a selfie as they also headed gleefully to the holy city from Kolkata.

"We have been to Kumbh Mela at other places like Haridwar, but to Prayagraj Mela, we are going there for the first time," one of the daughters, who didn't wish to be identified, told PTI.

Her mother also said the comments of 'Mrityu Kumbh' could have been avoided, it was "not agreeable".

However, not everybody from West Bengal was heading to the Maha Kumbh for religious or spiritual reasons.

For Kolkata native Pattrea, 51, a trained merchant navy, currently on break, told PTI in Kolkata, before boarding his flight to Prayagraj, "I am going there just as a tourist".

"No snan for me at Sangam, especially with all the reports of the river water not being fit for bathing. I am going there for the first time, and it is just to see things and observe. I will be returning on February 25, a day before the Mahashivratri, to avoid the massive crowd," he said.

He said that his family even dissuaded him to travel to Prayagraj after the stampede case and the water quality level dipping, and travel to Sikkim instead.

"But, I wanted to experience this a tourist, so here I am," said Pattrea, who reached Prayagraj airport late night on Sunday.

Asked about the remarks made by the West Bengal chief minister recently, he said, "She can criticise the UP government for the arrangements situation, but she should not have spoken in such a language".

Banerjee's remarks had created a political furore with many BJP leaders criticizing her for it.

Usha Pandey, 57, along with her son Vikas Pandey, 23, travelled to Prayagraj from Kolkata on Sunday night.

"God has called me so I am going with my son. I will pray for well-being of my family and the society," Usha Pandey told PTI.

The woman, a native of Ballia in Uttar Pradesh, said she had moved with her husband to Kolkata after her marriage about 35 years ago.

"My husband died in a road accident in 2023. And, this Kumbh Mela, I will take a holy dip and seek blessings of 'Bhagwan'. Faith helps is heal," she said.

Asked about the 'Mrityu Kumbh' comments, the woman said, "I don't know what others say, I am following God's calling."

Many passengers, men and women who arrived at Prayagraj were seen clicking selfies with Kumbh themed posters at the airport which has been decorated to celebrate the occasion and welcome devotees to the holy city.