Many tents were destroyed in a fire within a large part of Kumbh grounds in Prayagraj after a cylinder in one of the tents exploded.
No one was injured in the incident but the incident panicked many Hindu devotees.
The fire broke out Digambar Akhada camp in Sector 13 of the Kumbh complex on Monday morning. Firefighters and other rescue officials, including soldiers deployed to ensure safety of pilgrims, were seen battling the blaze.
Several fire tenders were rushed to the spot to ensure that the fire did not spread as strong winds swept the area.
The fire was contained by afternoon.
“Fire has been contained and the area is being cleared now. There has been no loss of life or injuries,” said SP Security, Kumbh, Prayagraj.
Meanwhile, on Monday, Director General of Police (DGP) OP Singh told PTI that security has been beefed up for a seamless and incident-free Kumbh. Innovative technologies for security are also been used.
The DGP said that as many as 40 fire stations have been set up in and around the venue and over 4,000 fire hydrants, 70 high-pressure water mist motorcycles and trolley-mounted high-pressure extinguishers will also be there in case of a fire. Fire-fighting speedboats, Bambi Bucket system for aerial fire-fighting, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams are also present to address any eventuality.
He said that a modern integrated command-and-control centre has been set up for 24-hour monitoring through 1,200 CCTV cameras.
“The whole region has been demarcated into nine zones and 20 sectors with the deployment of over 20,000 police personnel, 6,000 homeguards, 40 police stations, 58 outposts, 40 fire stations, 80 companies of central force and 20 companies of PAC,” the DGP added.
With a view to counter any terrorist activity, Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) commandoes, anti-sabotage commandoes with snipers, bomb disposal units, sniffer dog squads and intelligence units have also been pressed into service, Singh said.
The Kumbh 2019 starts on Tuesday. The mega religious, spiritual and cultural congregation attracts millions to the confluence of Ganga and Yamuna rivers and the mystical Saraswati, spread in an area over-3,200-hectare land.
More than 12 crore people are expected to take part in the event over the next 50 days.
(With inputs from agencies.)