Serving devotees at Maha Kumbh Mela 2025
Maha Kumbh Mela 2025 is celebrated at Prayagraj in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh from January 13 to February 26. It is a momentous occasion due to the rare astrological positions of the Sun, the Moon, and Jupiter. This alignment occurs after 12 cycles of the 12-year Kumbh Mela, which is every 144 years. Millions of devotees at Prayagraj are performing the bathing ritual at the Triveni Sangam. This Sangam is the confluence of three rivers—the Ganga, the Yamuna, and the mystical Saraswati. It is believed that by submerging oneself in these holy waters, one can cleanse their sins and move toward spiritual liberation.
Knowing that the Maha Kumbh Mela would be a major attraction, the local administration established a temporary city spanning 4,000 hectares on the banks of the rivers. This city is divided into 25 sectors connected by several major roads referred to as ‘Marg’. The local administration assigned a site near Mahavir Marg in Sector 21 to Vishav Manav Ruhani Kendra (VMRK) to provide food and medical services. This site is located approximately 500 meters from the Triveni Sangam and measures 200 by 200 feet, surrounded by metal sheets.
VMRK received permission for food service on December 21, 2024, while permission for medical and ambulance services was received on January 12, 2025. VMRK is grateful to the local administration for granting permission to serve devotees.
Preparing to serve masses
VMRK made preparations to serve over 30,000 meals daily to devotees. In order to serve such a large crowd over the sustained duration of the Maha Kumbh Mela, VMRK arranged a large German hanger tent, measuring 82 feet by 115 feet for food service. The team prepared a detailed list of utensils and ingredients needed for preparing breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Then VMRK volunteers set out to source and organize all the items. To prepare the huge amount of chapatis needed daily, a chapati-making machine was purchased.
For the medical service, VMRK arranged a tent measuring 45 feet by 23 feet. A team of VMRK volunteers procured, packed, and labeled 13 boxes of medical supplies and equipment.
VMRK also had to plan for the crews to run each service. Given the long duration of the mela, VMRK scheduled batches of volunteers to serve in shifts of 10–15 days. With January and February being winter months in India, VMRK arranged bedding to keep the volunteers warm in their accommodations during the mela. For this, volunteers packed over 1,180 pieces of blankets, quilts, and thin foam mattresses.
Five trucks transported all the materials from Nawan Nagar center to Prayagraj located approximately 953 kilometers away. These trucks, along with an ambulance, left the center in phases between January 1 and January 19 and each trip took approximately 17 hours.
Service continuity throughout the mela is essential and a smooth handover between the shifts of volunteers is critical. Therefore, VMRK is operating overlapping shifts by dispatching the next batch of volunteers before each shift concludes. In this way, each new batch is able to arrive early and settle in before they take over from the preceding shift. The first batch of volunteers started arriving on December 27, 2024, to set up the services.
Getting ready to serve
VMRK meticulously planned the layout to make efficient use of the assigned space. First, volunteers erected a welcoming archway over the 15.5-foot wide entrance and decorated it beautifully in traditional Indian style.
The food distribution area is located directly ahead of the entrance. Carpets cover the entire food distribution area and mats are arranged in rows so that devotees can sit comfortably while eating their meals. At the rear end of the area, a metal tent has been set up for food preparation, food storage, and washing utensils. Volunteer accommodations are set up in multiple small tents at the assigned site.
At the reception area to the right of the entrance, volunteers are on hand to assist devotees with information about VMRK and its various charitable initiatives. To the left of the entrance is the medical camp with tables set up for patient registration, first aid, patient consultations, and dispensing medicines.
Six LED screens have been set up at various locations across the designated site. These screens display VMRK’s charitable initiatives and Sant Baljit Singh Ji’s talks from past devotional events. Additionally, as a safety measure, fire extinguishers are strategically placed.
Sant Baljit Singh Ji’s visit
VMRK commenced its food services on January 12, an evening before the beginning of the Maha Kumbh Mela. The same day, Sant Baljit Singh Ji made a surprise visit to the assigned location. This brought a wave of joy among all the volunteers present. Sant Baljit Singh Ji walked through the entire area. Following this, he sat down and had a meal in the seating area designated for devotees. Before leaving, he gave a short talk to everyone present. He encouraged people to think well of everyone and do good to everyone. His visit and words further motivated the volunteers, inspiring them to continue serving the devotees with love and dedication.
Serving food with love
To serve the immense crowd, around 200 volunteers are working diligently in shifts. Each day the food service begins around 7 am with chai and rusks. Shortly thereafter, wholesome vegetarian meals are served. Our volunteers regularly monitor the food supply throughout the day. When one batch of food is nearly finished, our volunteers immediately start preparing another batch of food. This ensures that the three meals comprising chapati, seasonal vegetables, rice, and pulses are served hot and fresh. The service continues each day as long as devotees keep arriving, sometimes running as late as 2 am.
With so many devotees to serve, the queue usually extends beyond the entrance, so our volunteers use loudspeakers to guide them. Inside the food distribution area, volunteers serve meals to the devotees one by one in the queue. The devotees then take their seats in the seating area. To offer additional servings as needed, our volunteers continuously move through the seating areas. Senior citizens and individuals with special needs are given priority to ensure they do not have to wait long. For their comfort, tables and chairs have been arranged, allowing them to dine with ease.
As devotees finish their meals and exit the food distribution area, volunteers are readily available to also offer water. Our volunteers regularly clean the food distribution area to ensure a clean and hygienic environment.
VMRK has served hundreds of thousands of meals to devotees.
Medical care for devotees
VMRK’s medical camp has been operating from 8 am to 12 midnight daily, starting from January 22. The camp is staffed by a team of six medical professionals and volunteers. In addition, an ambulance is on standby beside the camp to serve devotees requiring emergency medical attention. It is fully equipped with an oxygen cylinder, portable ventilator, multipara monitor, defibrillator, and infusion pump.
Devotees visiting the camp are first registered as patients. Then they wait in the designated seating area where VMRK volunteers guide them to the next available doctor. This works well to streamline patient consultation. After consultation, patients receive medicines prescribed by the doctors. The medical services and medicines are provided free of charge.
Since devotees travel from far-off places to join the celebration, many experience ‘traveler’s diarrhea’. Additionally, many devotees come from regions with relatively warmer temperatures. Those who do not dress warm enough for the cold weather conditions in Prayagraj then catch the cold, cough, flu, and fever. In addition to prescribing medicines, the doctors are also administering nebulization to enable patients to more easily inhale the misted medication.
Due to the massive crowd, many devotees have to walk up to 10 kilometers to the Triveni Sangam on foot. As a result, patients are also visiting the medical camp with symptoms of weakness, body pain, breathlessness, and dizziness.
VMRK has offered free medical care to thousands of devotees.
Visitor feedback
Many people left comments in our visitor log, some are listed below:
We visited several places in Prayagraj. The food service offered by Sant Baljit Singh Ji’s organization was found to be excellent. Moreover, the arrangement and service of the volunteers were commendable. The food served was both hygienic and tasty.
This food service is very commendable work. Devotees who do not have arrangements for food and water are receiving support from Sant Baljit Singh Ji’s organization. I have never seen any better work in my life than this, which is being carried out selflessly.
My experience with the food service and the sense of hospitality offered by VMRK at Prayagraj 2025 was excellent. While other camps are serving food as well, the devotion with which food is offered at this camp was not felt elsewhere.
It was a pleasure to visit VMRK’s camp. I greatly appreciate the behavior of all the volunteers here. We couldn’t find better arrangements than this at the Kumbh Mela.