PRAYAGRAJ: The Akhil Bhartiya Akhara Parishad (ABAP) has invited Uttarakhand chief minister Trivendra Rawat to visit Prayagraj on new year.
The CM of the neighbouring state is being invited by ABAP’s president on behalf of parishad for showing the how the upcoming Magh Mela in Prayagraj is becoming organised on a grand scale despite the challenge of the Corona crisis.
The proposal for this meeting has been prepared and sent to the Haridwar government in a meeting of the parishad at Haridwar.
ABAP had been contemplating to hold Haridwar Kumbh Mela on a small scale till now, but now that the cases of Corona infection are steadily decreasing, the parishad has decided that the fair should be held in full grandeur, following all the safety norms.
All Mahamandaleshwara’s, Mahants and Shrimantha’s will be invited along with the CM.
“Uttarakhand CM is being invited by us to visit Prayagraj so that he can personally see how the Uttar Pradesh government and the Prayagraj administration are organising Magh Mela on such a grand magnitude and at the same time follow all laid down Covid-19 protocols. When Magh Mela can be held, so why not Haridwar Kumbh”, said president of ABAP, Mahant Narendra Giri.
Likewise, Mahant Hari Giri, general secretary of ABAP and chief patron of Juna Akhara, said that this decision has been taken in view of present situation in terms of declining number of corona cases across the country. “If unfortunately the corona cases increase in the country after mid-February, work will be done as per the guideline issued by the Uttarakhand administration. At the moment we will not compromise on our religious program”, he said.
Meanwhile, clarifying the stand of ABAP on holding Haridwar Kumbh, president of ABAP Narendra Giri has said that there should be no confusion in the air that ABAP had ever said that Haridwar kumbh sould not be held. “We had always said that Uttrakhand government should do everything possible to organised Kumbh 2021 but till now, the government has not made its stand clear and as such no arrangements have been initiated to hold Kumbh”.
He added that like Prayagraj, river Ganga has a vast bank at Haridwar and saints are ready to be located at other side of the river which has enough space to accommodate seers coming to Khumbh.
He said that the saints have always held that the Kumbh should be held in accordance with the prevailing situation with regard to Coronavirus and therefore as for the preparation go, it should be for a full scale fair. “This stand has been repeatedly been put forth by us while meeting the Uttrakhand CM. There should be no doubt in people’s mind that Akhada Parishad has ever said that no fair would be held,” he said.
The move is also being seen in connection with the Akhada Parsiahd’s wish to go ahead with all its ceremonies and that of the akhadas with full splendour in accordance with the religious importance of the religious fair at Haridwar instead of its earlier decision to hold all events in a scaled-down version owing to the threat and restrictions put in place owing to the pandemic outbreak.