Overview
- Reports from officials and media showed fast-rising counts through the morning, from roughly 50 lakh by 4 a.m. to 1.3 crore by 8 a.m., with some updates citing more than 3.15 crore by midday.
- Police, water units and rescue teams enforced a multi-layer plan featuring 1,500+ AI-enabled cameras, zonal crowd routing, river patrols and extensive traffic controls across the mela area.
- Temporary infrastructure included expanded ghats of about 3.5 km, thousands of toilets and sanitation staff, dedicated parking zones and a statewide bus push to move pilgrims.
- Ritual bathing and ancestor rites were observed across Prayagraj, Haridwar and Varanasi, with Maun Vrat and charity emphasized as the Amavasya tithi ran from just after midnight Jan 18 to early Jan 19 and Sarvartha Siddhi Yog was noted as auspicious.
- Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand alleged police blocked and roughed up his group near the Sangam, a claim reported during generally orderly proceedings that officials said continued smoothly.