Despite the Gujarat government’s introduction of a state transport bus package to Prayagraj, devotees from Gujarat faced challenges as the three night, four day package on offer quickly sold out. With skyrocketed airfares and long railway waiting lists, the GSRTC trip package offered a ray of hope, only to be booked to capacity in no time.

Tickets for this service were sold out within an hour of the opening of the booking, and all tickets until February 25 were fully booked. This quick sell-out of tickets for 30 days left many pilgrims disappointed.

The special bus service will commence on January 27. It will depart daily at 7 am from Ranip ST Depot in Ahmedabad to Prayagraj. The fare for the 3-day, 4-night trip is ₹8,100 per person.

Middlemen involvement?

Ticket bookings opened at midnight on January 25, and within an hour, all 1,380 tickets available until February 25 were sold. Many who tried booking tickets in the morning found all dates until February 25 marked as ‘booked’ leading to disappointment.

The bus has a seating capacity of 46 passengers. Over the next 30 days, 1,380 passengers are expected to travel from Ahmedabad to Prayagraj. The rapid ticket sell-out has fueled speculation that BJP MLAs and corporators may have pre-reserved tickets for their ‘supporters’. Critics argue it is otherwise implausible for all tickets to be sold so quickly. This ticket sale is expected to generate over ₹1.11 crore in revenue for GSRTC.

Rajkot-Prayagraj GSRTC buses?

There is speculation that more special buses with similar packages may be introduced in the coming days for Mahakumbh. Plans to start similar bus services from Rajkot, Surat, and Vadodara are also being considered.

For pilgrims, reaching Prayagraj from Ahmedabad has been a challenge. One-way airfares have soared to ₹40,000, while special trains remain overbooked, with waitlists exceeding 300. The GSRTC’s special bus service is said to be accessible only to those with the right 'connections', as tickets are nearly impossible to secure. This has led to growing demands for more buses and trains to be introduced for Mahakumbh.

Private bus services triple in 10 days

At the start of Mahakumbh, there were only five private buses operating between Ahmedabad and Prayagraj. That number has now increased to 15, with fares ranging from ₹3,800 to ₹6,000.

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