Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi visited Mahakumbhnagar and Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh (UP) on 13th December 2024 to review the preparations of Mahakumbh Mela 2025 festival.
- During the visit, he inaugurated 167 multiple development projects worth around Rs 5500 crore at Prayagraj, UP.
- He also launched the Kumbh “Sah’AI’yak”, Artificial Intelligence(AI)-powered chatbot which provides details on guidance and updates of the events to devotees of Mahakumbh Mela 2025.
Highlights of the Visit:
PM Modi inaugurates Multiple Development Projects:
i.The PM Modi inaugurated multiple development projects at Prayagraj,UP including 10 new Road Over Bridges (RoBs) and flyovers, permanent Ghats, and riverfront roads.
- These developments aim to ensure seamless connectivity within the city.
ii.In line with the Swachh and Nirmal Ganga mission, projects for the interception, tapping, diversion and treatment of minor drains was also inaugurated by the PM, ensuring zero untreated water discharge into the Ganga river.
- He also inaugurated various infrastructure projects related to drinking water and power.
iii.Additionally, major temple corridor projects such as “Bharadwaj Ashram corridor, Shringverpur Dham corridor, Akshayvat corridor, Hanuman Mandir corridor” were also inaugurated by PM Modi to promote spiritual tourism and facilitate easier access for devotees.
PM Modi launches “Sah’AI’yak” chatbot:
i.PM Modi launched the ‘Kumbh Sah’AI’yak‘ AI powered chatbot, part of the “Digital Mahakumbh” initiative aimed to assist pilgrims and visitors at the Maha Kumbh Mela 2025.
- Available 24/7, it provides real time, multilingual support in 11 Indian Languages (Hindi, English, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi, Malayalam, Urdu, Gujarati, Punjabi, Kannada and Bengali).
ii.It was developed by the Prayagraj Mela Authority and Uttar Pradesh Development Systems Corporation Limited(UPDESCO).
- It was hosted on an open source multilingual Large Language Model (LLM) by Ola’s Krutrim.
iii.This free app offers navigation assistance, cultural insights and guidance on the history, rituals, travel, accommodation and key attractions in Prayagraj.
About Kumbh Mela:
i.The Maha Kumbh Mela (the festival of the sacred pitcher) is anchored in Hindu mythology and is the world’s largest public gathering and collective act of faith.
ii.Kumbh Mela, in Hinduism, is a religious pilgrimage that is celebrated 4 times over a course of 12 years.
- The 2025 Maha Kumbh Mela is scheduled to take place in Prayagraj,UP from January 13(Paush Poornima) to February 26,2025(Maha Shivratri) .
iii.The geographical location of Kumbh Mela spans over 4 locations in India and the Mela site keeps rotating between one of the four pilgrimages on 4 sacred rivers as listed below:
- Haridwar, Uttarakhand on the banks of Ganges.
- Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh (MP)on the banks of Shipra.
- Nashik, Maharashtra on the banks of Godavari.
- Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh (UP) at the confluence of the Ganges, the Yamuna and the mythical invisible Sarasvati.
Note: The area on the banks of Sangam in Prayagraj, where the upcoming Maha Kumbh will be held in 2025 has been named Mahakumbhnagar and notified as a new district by the UP government.
About Uttar Pradesh (UP):
Chief Minister (CM)-Yogi Adityanath
Governor – Anandiben Patel
Capital- Lucknow
National Park- Dudhwa National Park
