Campus Talk: Maharashtra offers 1-month ‘Purohit’ service course ahead of Nashik Kumbh Mela
This one-month course will be implemented jointly by the Department of Skill Development, Employment, Entrepreneurship and Innovation, and Kavi Kulguru Kalidas Sanskrit University in Ramtek.
3 min readMumbaiUpdated: Dec 16, 2025 03:29 PM IST
Despite the requirement of diverse manpower skilled in various trades to manage a large-scale event like Kumbh Mela, the focus on religious roles has sparked a quiet debate. (Source: Wikimedia Commons/ Representational)
Ahead of the Kumbh Mela to be held in Maharashtra’s Nashik in 2027, the state government’s Skill Education Department has launched a short-term course aimed at creating manpower for ‘Purohit’ services (priest for Hindu rituals).
Despite the requirement of diverse manpower skilled in various trades to manage a large-scale event like Kumbh Mela, the focus on religious roles has sparked a quiet debate.
This one-month course will be implemented jointly by the Department of Skill Development, Employment, Entrepreneurship and Innovation, and Kavi Kulguru Kalidas Sanskrit University in Ramtek.
The course, which will include 45 hours of training, has been divided into four phases, and each segment carries 25 marks, for which assessment will be conducted through weekly oral examination and multiple-choice questions, the department said in a statement. Certificates will be awarded to candidates based on their performance and attendance.
A 21-day workshop began in Nashik at the Shri Swami Akhandanand Veda Vedang Sanskrit College on December 16, with an objective to prepare trained personnel for various religious rituals and services that are expected to be in demand during the Mela.
Starting December 16, “this workshop aims at equipping participants with both scriptural knowledge and practical expertise required for large-scale religious events,” the department stated.
The participants will be trained in the recitation of Vedic scripts and different methods of worship and rituals.
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State’s Skill Education Minister Mangal Prabhat Lodha said that the participants will gain knowledge of Vedic and Puranic traditions, their significance, the scripturally prescribed methods of worship of deities, and correct pronunciation through this workshop. “This knowledge will also open up new employment opportunities for them. By bringing together the scientific understanding of Vedic traditions and an employment-oriented approach, this initiative will serve as an effective model of skill development while simultaneously contributing to the preservation of cultural heritage,” he said.
Considering that the Kumbh Mela is a large scale religious gathering that demands wide range of services – such as crowd management, security, healthcare, sanitation and logistics – the state’s skill education department’s decision to offer short-term courses focused solely on the religious aspects of the event has sparked a quiet debate with critics questioning the approach that overlooks the need for manpower with diverse skill requirements to manage an event of this magnitude.
Pallavi Smart is a Principal Correspondent with The Indian Express, Mumbai Bureau. Her reporting is singularly focused on the education sector, demonstrating exceptional Expertise and Authority across the entire spectrum of learning, from foundational schooling to advanced higher education. She is a highly Trustworthy source for policy, institutional developments, and systemic issues affecting students, teachers, and parents in Maharashtra.
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