Himachal Pradesh DGP prisons brings Mahakumbh to prisoners through water from Triveni Sangam
Over 100 inmates in two prisons participate in Rudrabhishek; jail administration plans more spiritual events.
The water, brought by Himachal Pradesh Director General of Prisons Sanjeev Ranjan Ojha, from the Triveni Sangam at Prayagraj Mahakumbh, was mixed into water tanks at District Jail Kaithu and Modern Central Jail Kanda in Shimla district. (Express Photo) In an initiative by the Himachal Pradesh Prisons Department, over a hundred inmates in two of the state’s jails were given the opportunity to take a ceremonial bath with water from the Triveni Sangam (the confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati) in Prayagraj on the occasion of Rudrabhishek, a day after Mahashivratri on Thursday. A total of 465 inmates, including 450 men and 15 women, are lodged in Kanda Jail, while approximately 230 inmates, including 216 men and 14 women, are in Kaithu Jail.
The water, brought by Director General of Prisons Sanjeev Ranjan Ojha, a 1989-batch IPS officer, was mixed into water tanks at District Jail Kaithu and Modern Central Jail Kanda in Shimla district. The Rudrabhishek of Lord Shiva was then performed, with inmates and jail staff participating in bhajan-kirtan (prayer) and other religious rituals.
DG Prisons Sanjeev Ranjan Ojha told The Indian Express: “I had gone to the Mahakumbh for the pious bath. This thought came to me — why not give the inmates in our jails the same opportunity? Not everyone can go to the Mahakumbh, and a jail inmate certainly cannot. I was emotional seeing their response when the jail staff informed them about the sacred water from Triveni Sangam. I don’t think inmates have ever had the chance to bathe with water brought from any Kumbh Mela before.” Ojha had travelled to Prayagraj with his family members.
Sources said: “Almost all the inmates took the ceremonial bath with the holy water. A family kitchen (langar) was also organised on this occasion. Some of the inmates had observed a fast yesterday, which they broke today with the Rudrabhishek using the holy water from Triveni Sangam. The religious-spiritual programme in both jails lasted for almost three hours.”
A senior prisons officer said: “The jail administration is committed to organising religious and cultural programmes in the future for the moral and spiritual upliftment of inmates. Such events not only provide spiritual strength but also inspire inmates to walk the path of positivity and transformation.”
Himachal Pradesh has 16 jails, housing over 3,200 inmates.
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