A confluence of heritage and infra as Prayagraj prepares for Kumbh

The sun is already setting behind the Ganga when Ram Asrey and Harish Chandra start packing up their hammers and shovels. The 62- and 60-year-old have been at work since eight in the morning, helping widen the roads from Prayagraj leading to the Kumbh mela ground. Their limbs are sheathed in sweat beads despite the winter chill setting in.

- Rajeev Mullick

"The Kumbh gives us livelihood for several months. We get ₹500 for eight hours of work. We are blessed to be part of this grand occasion, which witnesses a sea of people," Asrey, a resident of Kaushambhi, said.

They aren't the only ones. Around them, at least a thousand men and women are walking back to the temporary campsites, where they will rest before returning to work afresh. Some of them who reside nearby head to their homes. Most of the workers are from adjoining areas such as Pratapgarh, Kaushambi and Phaphamau. The steady buzz of road rollers, excavators and cranes that had rent the air at Sangam City has suddenly fallen silent.

"We have a job on our hands, and we are racing against a deadline. We must finish the task by the first week of next month. The shorter days and winter chill will only make things difficult," 58-year-old Daya Ram, a worker from Phaphamau said.

The silence doesn't last long. Around 30 minutes later, a fresh army of workers descend upon the muddy expanse of land on the banks of the Ganga. They will work through the night, levelling the ghat and painting the boundary wall, and only put their tools down when Ram Asrey and Harish Chandra return in the morning.

This has been their draining routine for 50 days - channelising the river, widening the road and levelling the ghat- but no one is complaining. For them, this is holy work - building an abode for one of the holiest events in Hinduism, the duodecennial Maha Kumbh on the banks of the Ganga at the site of Sangam in Prayagraj between January 13 and February 26.

"We are happy to be a part of the Maha Kumbh. Our hard work will make things better for millions of visiting devotees, sadhus and tourists," Ram Naresh, another worker said.