Massive crowds gathered at India’s northern city of Haridwar to join the Kumbh Mela religious festival on Wednesday (April 14) despite an alarming spike in COVID-19 cases.

The Kumbh Mela is a Hindu pilgrimage that is held every 12 years at sacred places, or river-ford sites, along the Ganges river.

This year the Indian government is expecting a total of 100 million people to take part in the festival.

Tis footage was filmed and produced 14 April 2021.

Massive crowds gather at India’s northern city of Haridwar throughout April 2021 for the religious festival of Kumbh Mela, despite the country’s grappling with a COVID-19 surge. The Kumbh Mela is a Hindu pilgrimage held every 12 years at sacred tirthas, or river-ford sites, along the Ganges River in India. This year the government expects over a million pilgrims a day to bathe in the sacred river. Over 5 million people are expected per day on the most auspicious days – April 12, 14 and 21 – for a total of a 100 million celebrants.

The video shows people taking bath as a ritual and tradition. As people said, even the security personnel took bath after the event.

Video location: Haridwar, Uttarakhand, India