The world’s largest religious gathering ends after 600 million followers take the sacred dip

Despite concerns about overcrowding and water pollution, hundreds of millions of Hindu followers have been soaked in the sacred waters as the world’s largest religious gathering was wrapped on Wednesday in Uttar Pradesh, northern India.

Over the past 45 days, almost a third of India’s approximately 1.4 billion population has participated in the festival of Mahakumbhmera, or Holy Pitcher, on the banks of the city of Prayagraj, in the view of expressions of color and faith.

Followers began to take sacred dip to Tribeni Sangam, the confluence of three sacred rivers, Ganges, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati.

Every 12 years festivals are equipped with the prefix “Maha” as it is the largest gathering of Kumbh Mela, held every three years in one of four cities.

“It’s a unique experience that’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” said Sushovan Sircar, 36, who works as an independent consultant in Delhi. “People from all over India are here. We saw plates of cars in almost every state.”

This year’s celebration has been undermined by the crushing of two separate deadly crowds, but millions have competed in the festival despite concerns of overcrowding and reports of “dangerous” levels of contamination at major bathing sites.

A report from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), part of India’s Ministry of Environment, discovered fecal bacteria from E. coli in the Ganges and Yamuna rivers despite the government promoting sustainable initiatives and hygiene efforts.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath denied the accuracy of the government report and argued that water is safe for not only bathing but also for Hindu rituals where a handful of drinks after bathing.

Participants are often completely submerged, and sometimes drink or collect sacred water in containers.

“My sins are cleansed, but not my body.”

Sircar, an independent consultant from Delhi, said he was bathed in the waters of Sangam Point. This is considered to be the most auspicious place to bathe at the confluence of the three rivers, and is where most people dip.

“There’s concern because there’s nothing I can do about contamination in the water. In your mind, you say to yourself, this part looks clean, spend a few minutes and come out reciting prayers,” Sarkar said.

“I took a shower for sin, then another for pollution,” he laughed. “So you need a bath after the bath… My sin will be purified, but not (my) body.”

Before the festival began, India’s top environmental courts had directed the state and federal pollution commissions to ensure that the river water is clean enough to drink and bathe. Increased monitoring and sample collection of Ganges and Yamuna rivers to prevent untreated sewage and solid waste from being discharged.

However, a report filed by the Federal Pollution Commission on February 3 stated that fecal E. coli levels, a key indicator of untreated sewage and in-water feces, far exceed the safe limit set by a board of 2,500 units per 100 milliliters.

According to the report, in various regions of the Ganges and Yamuna rivers, rivers centered around the Prayagraj level, exceeded 1,000, to the extent that they were safe.

Adityanath said his government is continuing to monitor water levels to ensure its quality.

Organizers of Kumbh Mela also told CNN that a “exhaustive investigation” of all 81 drains that release river water was conducted before the festival.

“We have ensured that the water quality is maintained,” said Vivek Chaturvedi, a Kumbh Mela executive.

Delhi’s finance expert, 31-year-old Aishwarri Sharma, said he took a dip in the river despite knowing it could be contaminated.

“I think it’s very clear that Ganga and Yamuna are not beautiful rivers,” he said. “(But) there are many bad things for you… the air we breathe is so toxic to our health…it’s another contaminated thing that can have a detrimental effect on my health.”

For others, their faith and participation in the sacred festival was more important than their concerns.

“What (most people) are interested in is their dedication and religion and they want to take that sacred dip,” said Sunny Palasha, 34, from Panchkula, Haryana.

“There’s no question where there’s dedication and religion,” he said.

Kalpana Mishra, 55, a housewife of Prayagraj, said she would not take another sacred dip after reading the Pollution Commission’s report.

“What does it mean to be a literate person if you’ve heard all this and decided to go?” she asked.

Exposure to fecal contamination can cause waterborne diseases such as typhoid fever, diarrhea, cholera, gastroenteritis, e-coli, skin diseases and vomiting, health experts warn.

Push to clean the river

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has cleaned up the Ganges River, India’s most sacred river, since his first appointment in office in 2014. This has pledged or billions of dollars have been spent on sewage treatment, cleaning, surface waste and planting.

According to the World Bank, Ganges, a lifeline for the 400 million people who live and work alongside 50 cities that pump about 3 billion litres of sewage daily, runs through 50 cities that pump about 3 billion litres of sewage daily.

Yamuna, a tributary of the Ganges, has been troubled for decades by disposing of toxic chemicals and untreated sewage.

Prior to the festival, Indian authorities promoted this year’s rally as “Green Kumbh.” Single-use plastic, environmentally friendly toilets, electric rickshaws, and an army of 15,000 sanitary workers have won sustainable initiatives such as cleaning after a massive bathing day.

The Ministry of Culture said in January that the festival was “metically planned to maintain a hygiene and ecological balance,” and that it “set an example of a future large event” in its environmental responsibility.

River conservation and cleaning was a major theme, even at meetings with festival bystanders, where religious and environmental leaders were gathering for the first time on how religious institutions could cope with the climate crisis.

“If the river has no water, there is no kumbh. We don’t think of it as water, we think of it as nectar,” said India’s spiritual leader Swami Chidanand Saraswati at the meeting. “If we all don’t make an effort to protect it, the next (Kumbh Mela) will simply be on the sand.”

But complicating the Green effort is the size of the huge crowd at Kumbh Mela this year, with 250 million more people than initially expected, according to one expert. Government figures show that the authorities had planned to attend around 400 million people per day in the six-week gathering, with around 9 million people attending, with a total of about 620 million people attending.

Dr Nupur Bahadur, Associate Director of the Institute of Energy and Resources (TERI), a research institute for investigating wastewater management, established by the Government of India, said:

River pollution could be better managed by adopting better on-site prevention and disinfection methods, Bahadur said.

One of them can stop dipping every 12 hours after an hour, allowing fresh water to flow through the bathing area before “can resume dipping.”

Bahadur said that the “significant increase in footprints” at the festival is strained with infrastructure, but in such circumstances it is still “the best effort possible.”

Prayagraj resident Mishra said she will be happy when her city returns to normal.

“My eyes are constantly burning and there’s a lot of dust,” she said. “You can end the festival and get back to life.”

Create an account at cnn.com for other CNN news and newsletters