Preparations afoot for Ardh Kumbh Mela

Allahabad, Jan 2 (UNI) Preparations are afoot for the millennium's first Ardh Kumbh Mela at Triveni -- the confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna and mythical Saraswati rivers -- starting tomorrow on Paush Poornima, which is the first bathing festival of the month long fair.

Talking to mediapersons here this evening, Mela officer Pragyan Ram Mishra said the bathing will start early in the morning at 0430 hrs and continue till late evening.

Around 30 lakh devotees are expected to throng the holy city of Prayag on Paush Poornima.

''Unprecedented security arrangements have been made in and around Allahabad in view of the recent incidents of terrorist attacks in Varanasi, Ayodhya and Mumbai. Bomb and mine disposal squads along with sniffer dogs have been deployed in the mela area.'' SSP Ardh Kumbh Mela Rajiv Sabharwal said so far, 28 police stations, 35 police outposts, 26 fire stations and five police lines had been set up in the mela area.

Besides, 10 teams each of anti-sabotage, bomb disposal, 10 companies of PAC and 24 companies of CRPF had been pressed into round-the-clock service in the mela area, he informed.

He said the entry of heavy vehicles had already been banned in the district.

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