Plan your Kumbh · Families

Kumbh With Elders and Children: What Each Mela Provides

KumbhMela.info Editorial TeamChecked on Wed 21 Oct 2026

Travelling with older parents or young children? This page gathers what each Kumbh has announced for families, or did last time: help for elders and divyang visitors, lost-and-found centres and helplines, the family rites people come for, and what to pack.

ExpectedChecked on Wed 21 Oct 2026

Each row says whether it is announced for the coming mela, not announced yet, or what happened at an earlier mela (precedent). Most family arrangements for 2027 and 2028 are not announced yet.

Haridwar's official 2027 do's ask every pilgrim to keep a card with their name and an emergency contact in a pocket. Make one for each child and each parent before you leave your stay.

Help for elders and divyang visitors

Battery cars, wheelchairs and ramps were arranged at past melas. For the coming melas only Nashik’s plan names them so far, and it marks them tentative.

Prayagraj2025Precedent
At Maha Kumbh 2025 Prayagraj stations had battery cars on platforms and wheelchairs for elderly and divyang passengers, and lifts and escalators; some services could pause on main bathing days.^1,2
Prayagraj2026Precedent
Aaj Tak reported free e-rickshaws and battery vehicles for elderly and divyang pilgrims on Sangam routes at Magh Mela 2026, golf carts to Bade Hanuman and Akshayavat, and station wheelchairs.³
Prayagraj2026Not announced yet
Access arrangements for Magh Mela 2027 are not announced. The report of the first planning meeting, held on 27 August 2026, mentions none.⁴
Haridwar2021Precedent
In 2021 the irrigation department built changing rooms for women at bathing ghats in Haridwar and Rishikesh, and approach roads and ramps to three temporary bridges at Har Ki Pauri.⁵
Haridwar2026Not announced yet
The official 2027 website and map list no wheelchairs, ramps, accessible ghats or vehicles for elders and disabled visitors as of 21 October 2026.^6,7
Nashik2026Announced for 2027
The authority's June 2026 plan proposes Purple Accessible Corridors, designated accessible ghats, Divya Anubhuti Kendras and Purple Ambassadors for senior citizens and persons with disabilities. All are tentative.⁸
Nashik2026Announced for 2027
The same plan lists wheelchair assistance in its care for elderly people and children, and lockers at accommodation areas, ghats and ritual zones, run with self-help groups. Tentative.⁸
Ujjain2016Not announced yet
Nothing is announced for Simhastha 2028 as of 21 October 2026. For 2016, police planned e-rickshaws to carry disabled pilgrims to the inner ghats, except on Shahi Snan days.^9,10

Sources (10)

Pilgrims crossing a long pontoon bridge towards the tent city during the 2013 Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj — A pontoon bridge to the Kumbh camps, Prayagraj 2013.

Lost and found, and the numbers to keep

Every recent mela has run lost-and-found centres, and Haridwar has published nine proposed centres for 2027. Write down the nearest centre and the helplines before you go out.

Haridwar2021Precedent
In 2021 police ran eight khoya-paya centres, plus counters at 23 police stations and two GRP stations. Photos of lost people and items were shown on screens and social media.¹
Haridwar2026Announced for 2027
The official 2027 site lists nine lost-and-found centres by sector, marked proposed on its map, and helplines 112, 108 (ambulance), 101 (fire), 1098 (child) and 181 (women).^2,3
Prayagraj2025Precedent
At Maha Kumbh 2025 police ran ten digital khoya-paya centres, one opposite Prayagraj Junction. Reports were logged digitally with a receipt and shown on LED screens and social media.^4,5
Prayagraj2025Precedent
The 2025 helplines were 1920 (Maha Kumbh) and 1944 (mela police). BHASHINI's digital lost and found let visitors report lost or found items by voice.^4,6
Prayagraj2026Precedent
North Central Railway's Mela Rail Seva portal and app for Magh Mela 2026 had a lost-and-found section for belongings; railway helpline 139. Arrangements for 2027 are not announced.^7,8
Nashik2026Announced for 2027
The June 2026 plan lists a digital lost and found and a lost-and-found centre among tentative components, lost-and-found desks at parking sites, and a proposed multilingual voice bot.⁹
Nashik2026Not announced yet
Nashik City Police lists 100/112, 1090 (senior citizens), 1091 (women) and 1098 (childline), and links the Maharashtra Police missing-person search. Kumbh centres are not announced yet.¹⁰
Ujjain2026Not announced yet
No lost-and-found arrangements are announced for Simhastha 2028 as of 21 October 2026, and we found no official record of the 2016 centres online today.¹¹

Sources (11)

Family rites at the Kumbh places

Many families come to the Kumbh places to perform rites for their ancestors or for a child. These are traditions, guided by the family’s priest or the panda at the ghat. The rows say where each is traditionally done.

Nashik
Asthi visarjan at Ramkund, Nashik. Families immerse the ashes of relatives in the Asthi Vilaya Tirth at Ramkund, where bones are believed to dissolve, the Nashik district says.¹
Read more
Haridwar
Asthi visarjan at Har Ki Pauri, Haridwar. Families immerse relatives' ashes in the Ganga at Har Ki Pauri with traditional rites; ANI reported a group from Sindh doing so in May 2024.²
Haridwar
Shraddh at Kushavarta Ghat, Haridwar. The official 2021 Kumbh report says shraddh rites for ancestors are performed at Kushavarta Ghat, south of Brahmakund.³
Haridwar
Mundan at Kushavarta Ghat, Haridwar. The same report says godaan, mundan (the first haircut) and yajnopavit rites are performed at Kushavarta Ghat, where an image of Dattatreya stands.³
Prayagraj
Shraddh and tarpan at Prayagraj. The Maha Kumbh site says shraddh, the offering of pinda, is done by priests who keep family genealogies; anyone may offer tarpan.⁴
Read more
Prayagraj
Veni daan at Prayagraj. The head is shaved except the shikha and the hair offered to the Ganga; the Maha Kumbh site says it holds great significance at Prayagraj.⁴
Read more
Haridwar
Family registers with Haridwar's pandas. Genealogy priests near Kusha Ghat record family visits in bahis; The Hindu reported in 2023 that the ICHR plans to open such records to researchers.⁵

Sources (5)

Pilgrims bathing at Ramkund on the Godavari in Nashik, seen through the arches of a riverside arcade — Ramkund from the riverside arcade, Nashik.

What to pack for a family

The full list by season is on our Kumbh packing list. For a family, add these.

Photo ID, plus a photocopy
Booking confirmations, printed
Emergency numbers written on paper
A card with your stay’s address in Hindi and English
A card with your phone number in each child’s pocket
A walking stick, if a parent uses one
A small folding stool for queues
A change of clothes for after the bath
A quick-dry towel
Slippers you can wash
A bag for wet clothes
A cloth bag instead of plastic
A refillable water bottle
A charged power bank
Small notes and coins
Phone numbers saved and written down

To keep it light, read the bag system for the Kumbh.

Where to stay with family

A stay within walking distance of your ghat saves the longest walks. Our stay guides map the areas for Haridwar, Nashik and Trimbakeshwar, Prayagraj and Ujjain.

To choose by how far your family can walk, read choosing a stay by walking distance.

Questions people ask

Are there wheelchairs at the Kumbh?

At Maha Kumbh 2025, Prayagraj’s stations had wheelchairs and battery cars for elderly and divyang passengers. For 2027, Nashik’s plan proposes accessible ghats and wheelchair help, marked tentative. Haridwar’s official site lists none yet.

What should a child carry at the Kumbh?

A card in a pocket with the child’s name and your phone number. Haridwar’s official 2027 do’s ask every pilgrim to carry a card with their name and an emergency contact. The child helpline is 1098.

Where do families perform asthi visarjan at the Kumbh places?

By tradition, at Har Ki Pauri in Haridwar and at the Asthi Vilaya Tirth at Ramkund in Nashik. A family priest or the panda at the ghat guides the rite.

Where next

Photo: TirthProvisionalहरिद्वार कुंभ 2027Haridwar Kumbh 2027Thu 14 Jan to Tue 20 Apr 2027Open the guide

Photo: Rohit R Nashik, CC BY-SA 4.0Officialनासिक कुंभ 2027Nashik–Trimbakeshwar SimhasthaMain bathing Aug to Sep 2027Open the guide

Photo: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0Expectedउज्जैन सिंहस्थ 2028Ujjain Simhastha 202827 Mar to 27 May 2028Open the guide

Photo: Ninara, CC BY 2.0Expectedप्रयागराज माघ मेला 2027Prayagraj Magh Mela 2027Magh Mela, 15 Jan to 6 Mar 2027Open the guide

Sources

18 sources · checked 21 Oct 2026

Safety and Security services and Lost and Found Centers directory, Haridwar Kumbh 2027 official website · Haridwar Kumbh Mela administration, Government of Uttarakhand · 2026-10-21
Interactive Mela Map points data (all.geojson), Haridwar Kumbh 2027 official website · Haridwar Kumbh Mela administration, Government of Uttarakhand · 2026-10-21
Kumbh Administrative Report 2021 (Kumbh Prashasanik Report 2021), Haridwar · Kumbh Mela administration Haridwar, Government of Uttarakhand (posted on the Haridwar Kumbh 2027 website) · 2021
Support and Safety page (railway advisory, Lost and Found centres, helplines), Maha Kumbh 2025 official website · Prayagraj Mela Authority, Government of Uttar Pradesh · 2026-10-21
Mahakumbh 2025: A Spectacle of Faith, Unity, and Tradition (PIB feature, PDF) · Press Information Bureau, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India · 2025-02-26
Mahakumbh: Digital 'Khoya-Paya Kendras' set up to assist visitors with lost items · IANS · 2025-01-09
Magh Mela 2026: arrangements for senior citizens and the disabled on the Sangam sands, from wheelchairs to e-rickshaws (Hindi) · Aaj Tak (India Today group) · 2026-01-09
Railways launches the 'Mela Rail Seva' portal and app for Magh Mela 2026 pilgrims (Hindi) · Aaj Tak (India Today group) · 2026-01-02
First meeting on Magh Mela 2026-27 preparations; land-levelling tender soon (Hindi) · Amar Ujala · 2026-08-27
Kumbh Mela Plan (First Edition), Nashik-Trimbakeshwar Simhastha Kumbh Mela 2027: inclusion, parking, lost and found, media and Sadhugram sections · Nashik-Trimbakeshwar Kumbh Mela Authority, Office of the Divisional Commissioner, Nashik, Government of Maharashtra · 2026-06
Nashik City Police website (home page: helplines, press releases, citizen portal links) · Nashik City Police, Maharashtra Police · 2026-10-21
Ramkund Nashik (tourist place page) · Nashik District, Government of Maharashtra · 2026-10-21
Police reveal traffic plans for Simhastha fair · Free Press Journal · 2015-11-05
MP News: CM Mohan Yadav orders completion of Simhastha projects by Diwali 2027; 22 projects approved · Free Press Journal · 2026-04-07
Rituals of Kumbh (Shraadh and Tarpan; Veeni Daan), Maha Kumbh 2025 official website · Prayagraj Mela Authority, Government of Uttar Pradesh · 2026-10-21
Pakistani Hindus undertake spiritual journey in Haridwar, immerse ancestors' ashes in Ganga (ANI) · ANI, via ThePrint · 2024-05-05
Ancestry records of pilgrim centres to shed light on India's past · The Hindu (Sreeparna Chakrabarty) · 2023-03-31
Do's and Don'ts, Haridwar Kumbh 2027 official website · Haridwar Kumbh Mela administration, Government of Uttarakhand · 2026-10-21