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Maha
Kumbh ends
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Maha Kumbh 2010
At a Glance four months, four shahi snans, seven snans Haridwar, April 28 At sunset today in Haridwar, curtains will come down on the world’s biggest fair, the Maha Kumbh. This was the century’s first Maha Kumbh and also Uttarakhand’s first after its formation.
Talanighat runners dominate cross-country race
St Jude’s girls win
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Maha
Kumbh ends
Haridwar, April 28 At Brahmkund, Har-ki-Pauri, pilgrims kept pouring in from the wee hours and by the time the sun set, lakhs had taken a dip in the 130-odd sq km Kumbh mela area. Apart from Brahmkund, people were seen taking a dip at adjacent ghats like Malviya Ghat, Subash Ghat, Kangda Deep, Neel Dhara, Alaknanda, Lal Taura, Prem Nagar Ashram, Jatwada Pull and VIP Ghat. While millions had thronged the Ganga ghats on April 13 and 14 during the Pramukh Shahi Snan, today’s limited numbers in comparison ensured smooth proceedings at Har-ki-Pauri. The city had to put up with lesser traffic prohibitions. Yet the mela administration had made eight additional sectors for today’s bath and each was put under a sector magistrate. Elaborate security arrangements had been put in place and the city was cordoned off with security personnel like a fortress. From the elite Guldaar commando units, bomb disposal squads, horse squads, sniffer dogs, quick reaction teams, fire fighters, Jal police to traffic police, everyone was seen efficiently going about their duties. Akhadas and Kumbh Nagar camps have already been dismantled and so, today’s bath was more of a people’s bath. Though trains ran full and buses too were jam packed, the easy availability of the transport system made pilgrims’ visit a lot easy. Local life too didn’t suffer much due to the lesser crowd and fewer traffic restrictions. During the previous two baths, traffic had to be stopped at various points, but this time, two-wheelers, autos, rickshaws were seen plying in the inner part of the city. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank has expressed happiness over the successful completion of the Maha Kumbh and has termed the mega fair as a historic
one.
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Maha Kumbh 2010
Haridwar, April 28 This biggest fair in the world saw more than 6 crore people taking a dip in the Ganga in Kumbh mela area spread over 130 sq km spanning four districts of Haridwar, Pauri Garhwal, Tehri Garhwal and Dehradun in the state. The mega fair started on January 1, formally began on January 14 with the Makar Sankranti snan and today culminated with the Vaishakh Adimasaha Purnima Snan.
Tragedies
Three tragic incidents marred the Maha Kumbh in the past fortnight of the four-month mega fair which was otherwise a terror-free, violence-free and mishap-free affair. l Stampede: On the biggest day of the Maha Kumbh - the Pramukh Shahi Snan on Baisakhi (April 14), two pilgrims were crushed by a vehicle belonging to Juna Akhada saint Pilot Baba at the Birla Ghat. This led to a clash and a stampede resulting in five more deaths. Though the administration still claims that only seven died in the incident, several corpses are still being found from the river and many persons continue to report the disappearance of their kin after the tragedy. l Accident: A truck carrying Gujarat-bound pilgrims overturned near Iyrish setu killing three and leaving 12-odd wounded. l Fire: Several fire incidents ravaged lakhs of property at Kumbh camps with the death of two women at Bairagi camp. Lack of adherence to fire safety norms despite repeated reminders by the Fire Department made things worse for most camp managers. Beyond borders A group of 242 Pakistani Hindus visited Haridwar during Kumbh and took a holy dip. Apart from them, foreign nationals from more than 100 countries visited the holy city. Firsts
Additional shahi snan: Till the previous Maha Kumbhs and Ardh Kumbhs, shahi snans, in which akhadas take part, were limited to three. This addition of the mega fair had four shahi snans as the Chaitra Purnima snan on March 30 was converted into a royal bath in which all 13 akhadas took part. The date of the fourth shahi snan was announced during the tenure of the Kumbh. The Akhada Parishad, governing body of the akhadas, had taken an unanimous decision in this regard. During this shahi snan, six akhadas took out royal processions while two representatives each of the other seven took a symbolic bath.
Dip for deities: Deities from all across Uttarakhand were brought for a holy dip in Brahmkund, Har-ki-Pauri for the first time in the history of the Haridwar Kumbh. More than 381 deities from Garhwal and Kumaon regions and neighbouring Himachal Pradesh were brought in a procession to the Kumbh city for a bath after the completion of the four shahi snans. From the next Kumbh onwards, these deities and temple signs will take their holy dip at the start of the mega fair. Jamaats: All 13 akhadas took out royal processions ‘Jamaats’ while going for their royal bath only on the second shahi snan on March 15. Peshwayis: Brahmin Peshwayi made its debut and was given the name ‘dharam dhwaja’. The Valmiki and Ravi Das communities also took out Peshwayis across the streets of the Kumbh city. Stars descend on holy city
The performance was a subdued one as she performed on a pre-recorded performance. This didn’t justify her stature and the Rs 15 lakh performance fees that she reportedly took. Dimple girl and Indian Premier League (IPL) franchisee Kings XI Punjab co-owner Preity Zinta also visited the Kumbh city and took a holy dip. Vivek Oberoi visited the twin cities of Haridwar-Rishikesh, noted television actress Shweta Tiwari termed her Haridwar visit as a special one. Once-a-promising star Chandrachur Singh also took a dip in India’s national river. A party affair Before the commencement of the Maha Kumbh, Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank had written a letter urging the Central and state governments to make sure that their ministers and VIPs didn’t visit Haridwar during the Kumbh as their security cordons would inconvenience pilgrims. But the state government itself flouted the norms as a large number of politicians and VIPs belonging to the BJP and its allies came for a dip. CM Nishank, former Deputy PM Lal Krishan Advani, BJP President Nitin Gadkari, Rajnath Singh, Sushma Swaraj, Chhattisgarh CM Raman Singh and his whole cabinet, Vishwa Hindu Parishad International President Ashok Singhal, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and several BJP leaders made the most of having their party’s government in the host state. Opposition parties accused the BJP of politicising the fair by making it accessible to its party leaders, but barring others from
it. Much more than dips
Swar Ganga: Cultural nights named Swar Ganga at Kumbh Nagar for 40 consecutive days with performances by Kailash Kher, Pandit Jasraj, Pt Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, Anoop Jalota, Teejan Bai, Narendra Singh Negi, Tom Alter, Shobhana Narayan, Shujjat Hussain and Hans Raj Hans etc enthralled the gathering. Girdhar Gomang, former Chief Minister, participated as a musician. Campaigns: Several campaigns on topics like save Ganga, tobacco-free life, female foeticide, go green, polythene ban, global warming organised by Soham Baba, Shanti Kunj and other organisations made people aware about such issues. Marriage: The mass marriage of 24 differently abled couples was organised by Udaipur’s Narayan Seva Sansthan’s Dr Kailash Manav. The making of saints The akhadas conferred Mahamandaleshwar and Mahant titles on several persons. The conferring of these Hindu titles on foreign saints belonging to Australia, Italy, Nepal drew major international media space. Women sadhvis were also conferred religious titles while thousands were made sanyasis and sanyasins at the Ganga ghats after they performed ‘pind daan’ of their family members. Hiccup over hydel projects
Akhadas play a major role in the Kumbh. Midway during Kumbh 2010, the Akhada Parishad threatened to boycott the remaining Kumbh proceedings and move out from their camps in Haridwar on the issue of hydel projects on the Ganga. The parishad wanted an assurance from the government about stopping of all hydel projects on the Ganga to maintain its sanctity and natural flow. Talks with the state government failed and the parishad staged a dharna at Har-ki-Pauri, but the Central government’s decision to suspend operations at Bharionghati and Pala Maneri hydel projects led to suspension of the protest. Lost & found The ’60s and ’70s Bollywood films popular theme of ‘lost and found’ during Kumbh resurfaced with a whopping 27,000 persons getting separated from their near ones. The most sought-out cell was the Khoya-Paya (lost and found) cell of the mela police with serpentine queues seen till many days after the baths. But cellular phones and the loudspeaker announcement system made sure the number dipped to less than a 1,000 till the fair ended. Alas, several persons had left their old kin deliberately at the holy city. The biggest draw
Haridwar broke all records and hosted the biggest conglomeration of human beings at one place! Fool-proof security
Tributes paid to martyrs
In a tribute to security personnel, milk was sprayed from helicopters from Gangotri to Har-ki-Pauri by Barfani Dada for the 70 CRPF personnel who were ambushed by Maoists in Dantewada, Chhattisgarh. A prayer for world peace was also held. Bye Haridwar, hello Prayag
The next Maha Kumbh will take place in Prayag (Allahabad) from January 27 to February 25, 2013, while Nasik will hold the Ardh Kumbh from August to September 2015. To cap it all with cop shahi snan
After four months of duty, security personnel will take a dip in the Ganga in the next few days.
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Survey of India enter final with 7-run victory
Dehradun, April 28 The Survey of India team won the toss and elected to bat first. Opener Mohammad Tahir with 38 runs and SS Rawat with 17 runs give a good opening to the Survey team. The one down batsman, Rakesh Negi followed it up with 34 runs. Ashok Rana scored 24 runs. The IRDE gave 39 extra runs to help Survey team reach 186 for eight wickets in allotted 25 overs. DK Meena took three wickets for the IRDE team. The IRDE team lost their opener Vipin for a duck in the second over. It was Vinod Kumar with a 41 runs knock who gave strength to his team. Umesh supported him well with 22 runs. It was R Kandari with 27 runs (not out) and Rachit Sharma with 40 not out that took the IRDE team closer to the goal. But their effort went in vain. The IRDE team could only reach 179 runs for seven wickets in allotted 25 overs losing the semifinal match by seven runs. Devender Sharma took three wickets for 23 runs for the Survey team. The Survey team will clash with the Ordnance Factory team in the final of the tournament.
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Talanighat runners dominate cross-country race
Dehradun, April 28 The hardy villagers from Talanighat may not be big names in the sporting circle in the region, but were impressive on Sunday, winning almost all top positions in u-14 girls and boys group, and senior boys category. Praween Ramola, winner in the senior division, was the first athlete from the village to gain success in challenging race covering 7 km. Running with ease on the undulating terrain, Praween crossed the finish line far ahead of his rivals. Kamal, the runner who came second was also a resident of the same village. Both Praween and Kamal battled it out for supremacy in the initial stages of the race. But when the lead runners reached the 2-km mark of the race, both Praween and Kamal changed lead on the uphill section of the journey. Short surges, however, had its toll more on Kamal than Praween. He wasn’t able to respond to fast pace set by his rival. The small gap, however, increased to 400m in the end. After winning the race, Praween was happy with the result. "It was hard race, but I enjoyed it," he said. Kamal, however, said he was not fit enough to participate in the challenging event, but was confident of good show in the near future. "I should be in good physical condition for the next race," he said. Vishal from Makraet village took the third spot in the senior group. In the girls’ u-14 group, it was a clean sweep by Talanighat runners. But it was Shushila who was the first to cross the finish line, followed by Mamta and Babita. The 13-year-old Shushila was cut above the rest. A promising runner should be one to watch in the upcoming competitive season. The boys’ under-14 group was also dominated by Talanighat’s runner Pramod Ramola. Sushil and Surinder bagged the second and third positions, respectively. The distance of the race was 3km. Winners apart, top 10 competitors in all groups were given cash prizes. The competition attracted more than 30 runners from different villages, but a majority of them were from Talanighat. The main aim of the club is to encourage young generation of Garhwal hills, to take up sports, particularly athletics.
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Garhwal Sporting thump Little Star 7-0
Dehradun, April 28 Since the beginning of the match, Garhwal Sporting took charge and it was in the 5th minute that Gaurav Sharma on a cross scored the first goal. Shashank Mamgain scored the second goal with a header in the 15th minute of the game. The third goal, a solo brilliant run by Shashank Mamgain came in the 34th minute. Gaurav scored the fourth goal in the
40th minute. Shashank followed it up with another goal in the 43rd minute. It was Gaurav who increased the tally of the goal by scoring his third in the 50th minute. Shashank Mamgain scored his fourth goal in the 60th minute. The Little Star Club could not do much in the match as Garhwal Sportings completely dominated
the game. Akranta Club will meet the Doon Valley Club in the match tomorrow.
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Luxmi dribbles Guru Nanak Academy to victory
Dehradun, April 28 The Guru Nanak Academy girls dominated the game, since the Shigally Hills International school team was a new outfit.
Luxmi from Guru Nanak Academy scored at will in the 2nd, 33rd, 48th and 50th
minutes of the game, while Preeti scored in the 10th minute and Ria in the 40th minute to comprehensively rout the Shigally
Hills’ team. The Welham Girls hockey team will take on the Moravian Institute team, while Unison School will clash with Shigally Hills International School tomorrow at the tournament.
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Welham Boys, Sports School to clash in final
Dehradun, April 28 The MNSS Rai Sonipat team continued their winning ways by trouncing Sri Ram School, Delhi, 72-44. Amit was the highest scorer for the Rai Sonipat team with 17 points while Madhav scored 15 points for Sri Ram School. The Welham Boys’ team defeated St George’s College 52-36. Smarath scored 15 points while Veer scored 13 points for the Welham Boys’ team. For St George’s College, Navathep scored 16 points and Suraphot scored 10 points. In another match, St George’s College, defeated Blue Bells School 53-27. In another match, Rai Sonipat defeated YPS, Mohali, 82-75. Akshay scored 23 points for Rai Sonipat while Sanampreet scored 24 points and Parampreet 16 points, respectively, for the YPS, Mohali, team. The final between Welham Boys-A team and MNSS, Rai Sonipat, will be played at the Welham Boys’ School activity centre tomorrow at 5 pm.
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St Jude’s girls win
Dehradun, April 28 Doon Public defeated Carman School in the second match of girls making total score of 58. In the third match of boys, Hilton school won by 3 wickets while Sobhit from St Xavier’s team made highest score of 22 runs. The Guru Nanak Academy win in the fourth match by defeating the Shivalik International by five wickets. Tomorrow’s match will be between Unison World versus Carman School (girls), St Jude’s versus Hilton School (boys) and The Heritage versus Sunrise Academy.
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School holds Hindi debate
Dehradun, April 28 La Martiniere Girls’ College, Lucknow, La Matiniere Boys’ School, Kolkata, Mayo College Girls’ School, Ajmer, Sherwood College, Nainital, St Joseph’s Academy, Dehradun, RIMC, Dehradun, Scindia School, Gwalior, Welham Boys’ School, Dehradun, and Welham Girls’ School, Dehradun, participated in the competition. The topic was “Desh mein badhte arajakta ke karan buddhijeeviyon ki udasinta hai”. Principal of MKP PG College Indu Singh chaired the debate while the judges were senior littérateur Dr Jitender Thakur, author and writer Vicky Arya and ONGC language officer Ram Singh.
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Dream Girl Hema Malini and her daughters - actress Esha Deol and Aahna - not only took a holy dip, but also gave a classical dance performance at the Kumbh cultural night.
Over six crore persons took a dip during Kumbh. The administration had planned for five crore persons during the four months of the fair and 1.5 crore visitors on April 13 and 14, but the number was exceeded beyond expectation.
A Pakistani national was caught spying from Roorkee, but heavy security in the holy city ensured that the fair remained terror-free. As many as 21,000-plus security men and traffic police were deployed. As this was the first Kumbh for the Uttarakhand police, additional forces were brought from other states like Uttar Pradesh and Haryana and paramilitary forces like the BSF, CRPF, ITBP, RAF, PAC aided by National Disaster Management units, Jal Police, bomb disposal squads, sharp shooters-snippers, elite commando units, including Uttarakhand’s own Guldaar manned the Kumbh city.