Sanjay Saxena
Lucknow: When the Chief Minister of the state is Yogi, how can there be any compromise on the grandeur of the Kumbh Mela? Not only grandeur, but complete arrangements have also been made for the living conditions of the devotees visiting. To make this Kumbh Mela divine and magnificent, AI-based 2,750 CCTV cameras will play a significant role in security and crowd management. Currently, 1,000 CCTV cameras have already been installed. Surveillance will be conducted through 2,750 CCTV cameras from the city to the fair area. Additionally, 80 VMD TV screens will be installed at various locations in the city to display important information.
Kumbh Mela Officer Vijay Kiran states that the CCTV cameras will be equipped with artificial intelligence (AI). With millions of devotees expected to attend the Kumbh Mela, AI-based real-time crowd management systems will also be installed along the fair area, access routes, and major roads of the city. A separate control room will be set up for monitoring. A dedicated call center for the Kumbh Mela helpline 1920 will be established, staffed with 50 police personnel who will be available 24 hours a day. They will inform the respective police stations about any suspicious individuals, objects, or excessive crowds at specific locations, to help manage the crowd.
Parking arrangements for over five lakh vehicles will be made. During the last Kumbh, there was a significant lapse in crowd control at the station, resulting in the loss of several devotees’ lives. Keeping this in mind, mock drills are being conducted continuously at Prayagraj Junction to manage the crowd for this Kumbh. Under the leadership of Senior Divisional Commercial Manager Himanshu Shukla, the commercial department has conducted mock drills in collaboration with the Railway Protection Force. In these drills, commercial staff, along with the Railway Protection Force, practiced managing passengers from entry through the gates to boarding the trains, issuing tickets, providing train information, controlling crowds, sending passengers to the platform, and facilitating train departures.
