Serving free food to Kumbh Mela workers
The Maha Kumbh Mela 2025 was held in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, India from January 13 to February 26, 2025. Millions of devotees from around the world attended this momentous occasion that garnered widespread international media attention. Multiple news reports were published around the world about the unprecedented scale and significance of the event.
Vishav Manav Ruhani Kendra (VMRK) was given the opportunity to provide free food and medical services to the devotees from January 12 to February 27. This is reported in our blog post: Serving Devotees at Maha Kumbh Mela 2025.
On the evening of February 28, the local administration requested VMRK to continue providing food services. They conveyed their satisfaction with VMRK’s services during the mela, and asked VMRK to continue until March 20 to offer free food for the post-mela workforce that would remain to clean up the mela grounds. The local administration assigned VMRK a site near Jal Police Station, close to Sursuri Marg in Sector 21. The site included a metal tent measuring 20 x 20 feet for food preparation and storage, and an adjacent open area for food distribution.
DAYS FOOD SERVICE FOR POST-MELA CLEANING WORKFORCE
FREE FRESHLY COOKED MEALS SERVED
Serving free food to the post-mela cleaning crew
VMRK, grateful for another opportunity to serve, quickly began planning and purchasing the food supplies and ingredients. Since a large number of volunteers had left after the mela’s conclusion, VMRK promptly dispatched a new batch of volunteers to continue providing the food services.
The food service commenced at the newly assigned site starting March 1. VMRK’s team of around 12 volunteers worked daily to prepare and serve meals that consisted of chapati, seasonal vegetables, rice, and pulses. Each day, the team prepared breakfast, lunch, and dinner with food service beginning at 10 am.
VMRK extended the free food service to everyone who came to the food camp, not only the workers who cleaned the mela grounds. Those who arrived at the camp were first invited to sit in the seating areas, after which they were served a hot and fresh meal by the team of VMRK volunteers. These volunteers were constantly on the move through the seating area to offer more servings as needed.
From March 13 to 16, the sanitation workforce took leave to celebrate the Indian festival of Holi and this significantly reduced the demand and turnout at each meal. Accordingly, in coordination with the local administration, VMRK suspended the food service for those days and resumed serving meals again on March 17. Over the course of 16 days, VMRK served more than 30,200 free freshly cooked meals.