On the final day of Magh Mela, Sunday, February 15, 2026, which also marked Maha Shivratri, more than 40 lakh devotees took a holy dip in the Ganga and Sangam. A mela authority official confirmed that devotees started arriving late at night on February 14 to bathe on this auspicious day. District Magistrate Manish Kumar Verma said the Magh Mela ended smoothly under strong security measures. He shared that over 22 crore devotees took the holy dip during this year’s Magh Mela. The peak attendance was on Mauni Amavasya, January 18, when around 4.36 crore devotees bathed. Mr. Verma noted, "The scale of participation this year far surpassed the record of the 2013 Kumbh held in Prayagraj, when around 12 crore devotees had taken the holy dip." The event also made headlines due to tensions between Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati and officials. On Mauni Amavasya morning, police reportedly stopped the seer at Sangam Nose due to heavy crowd pressure, preventing him from proceeding in a palanquin with many supporters. After this incident, Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati chose not to take the ceremonial bath on subsequent auspicious days, maintaining his differences with the government.