Ban on entry of 4-wheelers till Feb 4, VVIP passes cancelled: CM Yogi announces big changes after Kumbh stampede

After the stampede in Maha Kumbh claimed at least 30 lives and left over 60 people injured, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has announced a slew of guidelines to ensure crowd and traffic management as well as better coordination among departments. 

Among these guidelines are that a strict ban has been imposed on the entry of four wheelers in Prayagraj till February 4 to control the crowd and ensure the safety of the devotees.

Appeals have been made to devotees to follow the guidelines and cooperate in avoiding any sort of chaos. In a late-night video conference with officers, CM Yogi said that lakhs of devotees were reaching Prayagraj from Varanasi, Ayodhya, Chitrakoot, and Mirzapur in the next 2 days.

Yogi ordered officers to keep a constant vigil in these cities and create holding areas in border points to proceed as per the circumstances. He also urged officials to use barricading effectively to maintain crowd flow and ensure proper parking arrangements in the Mela area.  

The guidelines announced by Yogi Adityanath are as follows: 

1. Mela area is completely a no-vehicle zone – Entry of all types of vehicles is prohibited.

2. VVIP passes have been cancelled – Vehicles will not be allowed entry through any special pass.

3. Roads have been made one-way – One-way traffic system implemented for smooth movement of devotees.

4. Ban on entry of vehicles – Vehicles coming from districts adjoining Prayagraj are being stopped at the district border.

5. Strict ban till February 4 – There will be a complete ban on the entry of four-wheelers in the city.

The unfortunate incident gave Opposition the required ammo to attack the state government, with the Congress blaming it on 'VIP culture'. Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi attacked the Yogi government over "poor management and prioritising VIP movement over ordinary pilgrims."

He also said that the government should make proper arrangements to prevent a repeat of such an incident in the future. The 'VIP culture' attack from Congress came after high-profile individuals such as Union Home Minister Amit Shah, CM Yogi Adityanath, Coldplay frontman Chris Martin and his girlfriend Dakota Johnson were spotted at the Kumbh Mela.