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Prayagraj, Feb 26 (IANS) The 45-day-long Maha Kumbh Mela, one of the largest and most spiritually significant events in the world, came to a spectacular close on Wednesday as millions of devotees gathered at the Triveni Sangam in Prayagraj for the final ‘Amrit Snan’ (holy dip) on the auspicious occasion of Maha Shivratri.

With chants of “Har Har Mahadev” echoing through the sacred grounds, over 1.32 crore pilgrims took part in the ritual, marking the culmination of this grand spiritual gathering.

The event, which began over a month ago, saw a steady stream of devotees from across India and beyond flocking to Prayagraj to bathe in the confluence of the Ganges, Yamuna, and the mythical Sarasvati rivers. As the sun rose on Maha Shivratri, the holy waters of the Sangam became a symbol of divine purification, with devotees immersing themselves in the belief that this sacred act would cleanse their souls and grant them blessings from Lord Shiva.

The scale of the Maha Kumbh Mela this year has been unparalleled. Official reports confirm that over 65 crore people have visited Prayagraj during the 45-day event, making it one of the largest religious gatherings on earth. The festival has not only captured the imagination of devotees but has also garnered extensive international media coverage.

Publications like ‘The Wall Street Journal’ highlighted the extraordinary number of participants, pointing out that the Kumbh Mela hosted more pilgrims than the entire population of the US. Meanwhile, ‘CNN’ provided in-depth coverage of the rituals, focusing on the presence of ash-smeared Naga Sadhus and the deeply rooted spiritual traditions observed at the Sangam.

The massive influx of devotees and visitors has led to significant logistical challenges, but the event has been marked by seamless coordination. Security and crowd control measures were heightened to ensure the safety of the attendees. Police forces, paramilitary units, and disaster response teams worked tirelessly, while advanced technology, such as AI-enabled cameras and surveillance drones, was deployed to monitor the crowds in real time. These measures helped maintain order amidst the throngs of people, ensuring that the sacred rituals went uninterrupted.

Managing the logistics of such a massive gathering required a great deal of preparation. Authorities ensured that a “no vehicle zone” was enforced in the Mela area and throughout Prayagraj to reduce congestion. Special trains were arranged to transport pilgrims, and the North Eastern Railway (NER) deployed additional trains to handle the heavy rush of travellers. The Uttar Pradesh government worked closely with law enforcement agencies, disaster management forces, and medical teams to provide a safe environment for the devotees.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday personally monitored the situation from the control room in Gorakhpur, ensuring that everything ran smoothly as millions gathered to perform their sacred rituals. His efforts were complemented by an extensive security presence, including the deployment of police and paramilitary forces, who helped ensure the safety of the pilgrims while maintaining the sanctity of the event.

One of the most visually stunning moments of the closing day was the grand floral shower at the Sangam. In a traditional gesture of respect and reverence, 20 quintals of rose petals were showered on the devotees as they took their final dip.

The sight of these delicate petals falling from the sky created a magical atmosphere, further enhancing the spiritual significance of the occasion. The petals, which covered the pilgrims in a blanket of fragrant beauty, symbolised divine blessings and the fulfilment of the devotees’ wishes.

The rose petal shower was organised by the Uttar Pradesh government, led by Yogi Adityanath, as a way to honour the devotees who had participated in the final ritual of the Kumbh Mela. This gesture added a touch of grandeur and festivity to the concluding moments of the event, leaving everyone present with a sense of profound spiritual connection.

Maha Kumbh Mela is more than just a religious event; it is a celebration of faith, unity, and the enduring spirit of devotion. Throughout the 45-day festival, pilgrims from all walks of life came together to participate in the sacred rituals, regardless of their background or status. The sight of millions of devotees, from different parts of India and the world, coming together to bathe in the holy waters of the Sangam serves as a testament to the power of spirituality to bring people together.

The festival’s significance is not just in the religious rituals but also in its capacity to unite individuals across regional, cultural, and linguistic boundaries. As millions converged at the Sangam, they were reminded of their shared heritage and collective spiritual journey. The Maha Kumbh Mela thus stands as a symbol of India’s rich spiritual tradition, one that continues to inspire people from all corners of the globe.

Over the course of the event, the Maha Kumbh Mela witnessed six key bathing dates, including Paush Purnima, Makar Sankranti, Mauni Amavasya, Basant Panchami, Maghi Purnima, and Maha Shivratri. These dates were marked by large gatherings of devotees, each participating in a different aspect of the festival, from the sacred dips at the Sangam to prayer ceremonies at the temporary temples built for the occasion.

The final day of the Kumbh, Maha Shivratri, was particularly significant, as it marked both the closing of the festival and the culmination of weeks of devotion. The day was not just about taking a holy dip; it was a celebration of Lord Shiva, his cosmic dance, and the divine love between him and Goddess Parvati. On this day, devotees offered prayers, performed rituals, and recited hymns in unison, reinforcing their devotion and spiritual resolve.

The Maha Kumbh Mela, though deeply rooted in Indian culture, has become a global event, attracting not only Indians but also people from across the world. Pilgrims and tourists from countries such as Nepal, and Sri Lanka, and even distant places like the US, Russia, Italy and Japan participated in the festivities, drawn by the sheer scale and the unique spiritual experience offered by the festival.

For many, the Maha Kumbh Mela is not just a religious event but a life-changing experience—an opportunity to cleanse the soul, seek blessings, and connect with millions of others in a collective expression of faith.

As the final ‘Amrit Snan’ on Maha Shivratri brought down the curtains on the 2025 Maha Kumbh Mela, the event left behind a lasting impact on all who participated. From the grand flower showers to the mesmerising sight of pilgrims immersing themselves in the holy waters, this year’s Maha Kumbh Mela will remain etched in the hearts of millions as a celebration of faith, unity, and divine blessings.

–IANS

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New Delhi, Nov 11 (IANS) Will developing countries be left behind in the race towards a new, green economy? This is an emerging threat, says a set of new discussion papers by New Delhi-based think tank Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) at a time when the UN’s 30th Conference of Parties (COP) has kicked off in Belem in Brazil amid a turbulent geopolitical landscape in which climate ambition is struggling to stay afloat.

‘Towards a new green world’, as the CSE paper series is called, was released on the eve of COP30. It calls for centering economic resilience, value addition and green industrialisation in the climate agenda for developing countries.

Releasing the series, CSE Director General Sunita Narain said: “Inclusive and affordable development is critical for economic resilience and will help combat climate change.”

“Countries need an economic stake in the green transition, which requires domestic manufacturing and job creation. For this, we must also reset global trade and finance rules for localisation and value addition.

“There is an opportunity to rethink these rules so that distributed local-led production systems can become the basis of green industrialisation,” Narain added.

Focussing on three strategic fronts of the green transition — agriculture and forest commodities, critical minerals, and clean technology and manufacturing — the series presents a Southern perspective on how the Global South can participate and stay afloat in the new, green economy.

Across commodities, minerals and manufacturing, developing countries face a common dilemma: They supply the world’s resources but capture too little of the value.

From raw cocoa and copper to lithium and solar cells, the green transition is repeating old patterns of extraction and dependence.

“The global green transition risks reproducing old inequities under a new climate-friendly banner, unless the Global South is empowered to capture greater value, diversify its economies, and shape the governance of emerging green industries,” says Avantika Goswami, programme manager, climate change, CSE.

“We need to reinvent the climate agenda for the Global South. Calling for decarbonisation without economic resilience is no longer viable,” she adds.

On agriculture and forest commodities, developing countries are trapped in a low-value export cycle — they sell raw agricultural and forest commodities, and end up with almost nothing of the value, says the first paper in the series.

For instance, Ivory Coast and Ghana produce over 50 per cent of the world’s cocoa beans; but, they account for a mere 6.2 per cent of the total export revenue from value-added products like chocolate and cocoa powder.

In contrast, manufacturers and retailers located in Global North countries capture almost 80-90 per cent of the total profit margin of a chocolate bar.

The paper argues that “a shift from raw exports to processing and diversification is critical”.

On critical minerals, the Global South holds most of the world’s reserves of critical minerals crucial for energy transition; but it captures little of the value generated from refining and manufacturing.

Says Goswami: “These countries remain exposed to commodity price volatility, balance-of-payments instability, and geopolitical risk.”

Taking the cases of three countries — Chile, Indonesia, and Congo — the paper has analysed the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of their critical minerals policies and strategic plans and offers a list of principles for paving the way forward through centering equity and justice for the Global South in the climate-trade-development nexus.

On clean technology manufacturing, global clean tech manufacturing is concentrated in China, the EU and the US; developing countries in Latin America, Africa and Southeast Asia together account for less than 5 per cent of production value.

Meanwhile, the Global South faces a dual challenge of decarbonising while industrialising to meet the demands of a growing economy.

Structural asymmetries persist: Developing nations assemble goods but import value-heavy inputs.

This paper explores how countries can pursue green industrialisation by building clean-tech manufacturing capacity amid China’s dominance, limited domestic capacities, and unequal participation in global trade.

Using case studies from China, India, Indonesia, and Mexico, it outlines key takeaways from country experiences in the clean technology sector, calling for renewed industrial policy, South-South cooperation, and global rule reform to build resilient economies.

The three papers present preliminary pathways for how developing countries can capture more value, earn more revenue and emerge as strong players in the new green economy for combating climate change.

Says Narain: “The future green economy must not mirror the inequalities of the old one. The Global South needs not just a greener world — but a fairer one, with economic resilience at its core, in hand with climate action.”

–IANS

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Kolkata, Aug 25 (IANS) Trinamool Congress MLA Jiban Krishna Saha attempted to flee his house and threw his phone in a bush after Enforcement Directorate (ED) officers conducted raids at his house in Burwan of West Bengal’s Murshidabad district on Monday in connection with a teachers’ recruitment scam.

However, the ED officers stopped him from escaping; they also recovered the mobile phone and seized it.

In 2023, the Trinamool MLA threw his two mobile phones in a pond to destroy evidence after Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officers raided his house.

On Monday, the ED began another search operation across the state in the SSC recruitment case. Searches are underway in several districts, including Kolkata, since morning.

Several teams of ED have gone to Murshidabad and Birbhum districts. ED officials are at the house of Jiban Krishna Saha in Murshidabad district, who was at his home at the time of the raid.

The ED has also raided his in-laws’ house in Raghunathganj in the same district. In addition, the Central agency has raided the house of Trinamool councillor Maya Saha of ward number 9 in Sainthia of Birbhum district, who is an aunt of Trinamool MLA Saha.

According to ED sources, they have raided several places in Kolkata. Searches are being conducted in various areas related to the recruitment case.

The ED is accompanied by a team of Central security forces. Two vehicles reached Saha’s house in Burwan in the morning. One was carrying ED officials, and the other had central forces jawans. They surrounded the house, after which the five-member team of ED officials went inside the house.

Seeing the ED officials at his door, Saha attempted to flee from the back gate of his house. However, he was stopped by the jawans. In desperation, he threw his phone in a bush. Later, ED officials recovered the phone and seized it. They are presently questioning the MLA.

The Central forces have also been deployed in front of the house of the ruling party councillor Maya Saha in Sainthia. The security forces are guarding outside while ED officials have gone inside for a probe. However, they have not commented on why this raid was carried out and what the search is for.

Meanwhile, a search operation is going on at the house of Saha’s wife, Togor Saha, in Raghunathganj.

In addition to these raids, it is reported that a search operation is underway at the house of bank employee Rajesh Ghosh, a resident of Mahish village in Murshidabad district.

The CBI arrested Saha on April 17, 2023, in the SSC recruitment case. Before that, a search was conducted at his house. During the search, Jiban Krishna threw his two mobile phones into the pond to destroy evidence. After a long search, the water was drained, and mobile phones were recovered. After 13 months, Saha got bail from the Supreme Court.

The latest search operation is underway after ED officials got a fresh lead in the case.

–IANS

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