The first Mahakumbh of the 21st century was also organized in Prayagraj. The 2001 Mahaparva was the first Kumbh Mela after the advent of the electronic and satellite era. During this time, technology was seen merging with spirituality and culture. The Buddhist guru Dalai Lama also visited this Kumbh. For the first time, the Uttar Pradesh government created an official website of the Mela and presented the grandeur of the Kumbh to the world through the Internet. 20 kiosks and cyber cafes equipped with Internet facilities were set up in the Mela area. More than two dozen international print and TV media houses came to cover it. Studios were set up at the venue. According to government figures, the number of devotees in this Kumbh crossed 7 crores, which was a record.
These 3 things were also done for the first time in the 2001 Kumbh:
For the first time, people were with mobile phones in the Kumbh Mela area and were connecting their loved ones sitting far away with the ‘verbal virtue’ of the Kumbh.For the first time, some hotels and tour-travel agencies started providing luxury facilities in collaboration with the UP Tourism Department.For the first time, stalls were set up to make horoscopes using computers and PCOs were made for phones. The model of the proposed Ram temple in Ayodhya was first placed in the 2001 Kumbh. This model was kept in the Vishwa Hindu Parishad camp in Sector 7 of the Mela. The ninth Dharma Sansad of VHP was held here from 19 to 21 January. Mahant Paramhans Ramchandra Das, President of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas, took a pledge for the construction of the temple. Earlier in 1989, in the third Parliament of Religions of Prayag Kumbh, it was decided to worship the stone and lay the foundation stone in Ayodhya under the leadership of Paramhansa Ramchandra Das. This fair also witnessed the religious diversity of India. The highest spiritual leader of Buddhism, the Dalai Lama, came to this Kumbh and participated in the ‘Sant Samagam’. He paid homage to the sages and performed Ganga Aarti. He said – coming to Kumbh is an opportunity to understand the Indian spiritual tradition. In the 2001 Kumbh, lakhs of people attended the Shahi Snan on Mauni Amavasya (January 24). Just two days later, on January 26, hundreds of people lost their lives in a devastating earthquake in Kutch and Bhuj in Gujarat. The shadow of this natural disaster was seen even in the Kumbh. The last Shahi Snan was held with utmost simplicity on January 29, on Basant Panchami. Bands were not played, saints and sages bathed in the Sangam and paid homage to those killed in the earthquake. All the programs in the city of Kumbh were suspended that day.
