Prayagraj (UP), May 26 (PTI): Kumbh used to be synonymous with filth, stampedes and mismanagement, but the 2019 mega fair organised by the BJP-led government received recognition from the UNESCO, Uttar Pradesh chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said on Tuesday.
He was in Prayagraj to inaugurate a ‘Sadan’ (House) Hall of the Prayagraj Municipal Corporation, the government said in a statement.
“Before 2017, events such as the Magh Mela and the Kumbh had become synonymous with filth, stampedes, mismanagement, and chaos. People even hesitated to visit Prayagraj,” Adityanath said.
The UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage to the Maha Kumbh bestowed a global identity upon Indian culture and the Sanatan tradition, he said.
During both the Kumbh-2019 and the Mahakumbh-2025, the “double-engine” government developed extensive infrastructure facilities in Prayagraj, which may become city’s heritage if maintained well, he said.
Meanwhile, the chief minister inaugurated and laid the foundation of several development projects worth Rs 400 crore, and launched the new website of the Prayagraj Mela Authority.
He said that nine years ago, Prayagraj was bogged in an atmosphere of fear, terror, anarchy, mafia dominance, and hooliganism, but that has changed now.
“Now, daughters, traders, and ordinary citizens can step out fearlessly at any time of the day or night. Should anyone dare to harass women or commit a crime against them, they will have to pay a heavy price,” he said, according to the statement.
Adityanath said Prayagraj was on its way to becoming a ‘Smart City.’with widened roads and other modern infrastructure.
Today because of the Ganga Expressway, one can travel from Prayagraj to Delhi in just seven hours, he said.
Adityanath said that a four-lane bridge over the Ganga is being constructed at a cost of Rs 1,000 crore, and work on the Phaphamau Bridge is also nearing completion.
The chief minister released a book chronicling the three-year journey of the Prayagraj Municipal Corporation. PTI NAV VN VN
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