Kumbh Mela 2021: Centre Issues Guidelines, Makes Registration, Medical Certificate Mandatory

The Uttarakhand government on Friday authorised the Garhwal Commissioner and the Kumbh Mela official to allocate works up to worth Rs 5 crore and Rs 2 crore respectively to speed up preparations for the forthcoming Kumbh Mela in Haridwar.

The Modi government on Sunday issued guidelines for the Kumbh Mela at Haridwar in Uttarakhand amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the guidelines issued by the government, all devotees desirous of attending the mela must register with Uttarakhand government. They will also have to obtain a compulsory medical certificate from Community Health Centre or district hospital or medical college in their state.

The National Security Guard (NSG) commandos will be deployed at the mela. Uttarakhand Police Commissioner Ashok Kumar said, “To take action against the anti-national elements, two NSG teams will be deployed during Kumbh Mela. The NSG teams will also train our Anti-Terrorist Squad.”

The central government has also acknowledged that since the Mahakumbh receives devotees from various states of the country as well as from abroad, it is necessary to take precaution. To be sure, the state government has asked the Centre for 20,000 additional vaccines. The state COVID-19 Control Room chief Dr Abhishek Tripathi divulged that the state government has sent a proposal for the same to the centre.

Meanwhile, the Uttarakhand government on Friday authorised the Garhwal Commissioner and the Kumbh Mela official to allocate works up to worth Rs 5 crore and Rs 2 crore respectively to speed up preparations for the forthcoming Kumbh Mela in Haridwar.

The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat here on Friday evening, Cabinet minister Madan Kaushik told reporters.

The mela official has also been authorised to increase the amount to be spent over sanctioned works by 50 per cent if necessary and split works of lengthy nature into two parts, he said.

To promote the Sanskrit language, the cabinet also decided to pay a monthly salary of Rs 15,000 to contractual teachers of the language teaching for more than five years, Rs 25,000 to those teaching for 10 years and Rs 30,000 to those teaching for more than 10 years, Kaushik said.

Contractual teachers of Sanskrit with an M.Phil or PHD degreee will be paid an additional sum of Rs 5,000 per month as per the UGC norms, he said.

As many as 155 contractual teachers of Sanskrit will benefit from the decision, the minister said.

The cabinet also gave its nod to release Rs 3.79 crore for payment of scholarship dues to scheduled caste students of Class 9 and 10 of 2017-18 and 2018-19 sessions.

It also decided to allocate 4.384 hectares of land in Haridwar free of cost to the governing bodies of saints and seers for bhu-samadhi (land burial) of sadhus when they leave for heavenly abode, Kaushik said.