Prime Minister Modi informed Parliament that the gathering of millions at the Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj marked the awakening of millions of Indians. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath went a step further and said that while the state government had expected 40 crore devotees to visit this 45-day event, more than 66 crore devotees came to this `rarest of rare’ event.

There are serious question marks about how Yogi arrived at this incredible figure. The Indian Railways disclosed that they carried 4.7 crore people to Prayagraj during the period of the Kumbh. Even if one were to give the benefit of the doubt to the state government and the railways and accept that another 1.3 crore people travelled ticketless, the public who travelled by train would be around 6 crore.

If one were to rope in the number of pilgrims who travelled by cars, buses, tractors, trucks or walked, it is unlikely that this figure would have exceeded 10 crore.

How, then, can one explain the missing 46 crore? How did Yogi arrive at this magical figure? The government claims that their calculations were based on the numbers seen on 2700 AI-powered cameras put up to track the public, but this is not a scientific way to have arrived at such a figure.

Yogi also went ballistic in claiming the Kumbh turned out to be a huge money spinner for the people of Prayagraj. There is little doubt that one section of service providers—the milkmen, chaiwallahs, tempowallahs, auto rickshaws, taxi drivers, etc. —must have earned a bonanza. But the examples Yogi cited to show that the Mahakumbh gave a major push to the state budget seem far-fetched.

Post Kumbh, he cited how students studying in Prayagraj had ended up earning crores during the Kumbh. Prayagraj has emerged as a hub of education and is known to attract........

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