The Indian Railways is implementing a special arrangement for the upcoming Magh Mela, a significant religious festival, as a rehearsal for the Maha Kumbh Mela, which is expected to take place next year. Following the model used for the Kumbh Mela in 2019, the Railways will run special trains without...
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a fixed timetable during the major bathing festivals of the Magh Mela. These special trains will be operated based on the crowd volume on various routes. The same system could potentially be implemented during the Maha Kumbh Mela next year. This approach, inspired by the lessons learned from a stampede during the 2013 Kumbh Mela, was successfully deployed during the 2019 Kumbh Mela by the North Central Railway and Northern Railway. By adjusting the timing of special trains based on crowd density, the waiting times at junctions like Prayag and Rambag were minimized. This strategy also offered relief to travelers by deploying trains on routes with higher passenger volume.