What is the Maha Kumbh Mela and why does it attract millions of Hindus? - Officials had been preparing for months for the world’s largest religious festival, with around 400 million Hindu pilgrims exp

Prayagraj: The Uttar Pradesh government has invoked strict measures in Prayagraj a day after a stampede took place in the Maha Kumbh Mela.

In the wee hours of January 29, Wednesday, a sudden surge in the number of pilgrims at the Maha Kumbh Mela 2025 in Prayagraj, led to a fatal stampede. The tragedy resulted in at least 90 reported casualties in which 60 got injured and 30 died.

Now, in the wake of this incident, five major changes have been introduced to avoid such mishaps. The entire Maha Kumbh fair area has now been declared a No-Vehicle Zone, with all types of vehicles strictly prohibited from entering. This includes the cancelation of VVIP passes that previously allowed vehicle entry.

A senior police officer said at least 30 people died as a crowd panicked at the Hindu Kumbh Mela mega-festival in the northern city of Prayagraj.

Many were feared dead after millions of Hindu pilgrims at a huge Hindu festival in India rushed to bathe in holy river waters.

Nearly 40 people were killed in India's northern state of Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday and several others injured in a pre-dawn stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela - a Hindu religious festival touted to be the largest human gathering in the world.

Kumbh Mela is a religious gathering that draws tens of millions of Hindu pilgrims and spiritual seekers from India and across the globe. The event is deeply rooted in Hindu mythol

At least seven people were killed and around 10 injured in a pre-dawn stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela in the northern Indian city of Prayagraj on Wednesday, an official said, the most auspicious day of the six-week Great Pitcher Festival.