Prayagraj: Family members of at least seven devotees, including four women who visited Magh Mela, are searching for their loved ones, visiting Bhoole Bhatke Shivir and police stations in hopes of finding them.Umesh Tiwari, organiser of the Lost & Found camp, popularly known as Bhoole Bhatke Shivir, told TOI that volunteers, with the help of mela police, are looking for seven missing devotees. “Their family members have already lodged the missing complaint with the police stations concerned, and our volunteers are also searching for them with the help of digital and social media platforms.” The list of missing persons included Roshan Lal (18) of Reewa, Udhani Devi (80) of Begusarai, Nidhi Kumari (18) of Patna, Phool Kumari Devi (47) of Begusarai, Hemlata Gupta (54) of Balaghat (MP), Shiv Balak (22) of Koraon, and Abhay Raj Yadav (32) of Jhunsi.“While Roshan has been missing since Jan 8, there is no trace of Udhani Devi and Nidhi Kumari since Jan 18 and Jan 27, respectively,” said Tiwari, adding, “Phool Kumari Devi, Hemlata Gupta, and Shiv Balak have been missing since Jan 27, Jan 29, and Feb 1, respectively.” There are also no whereabouts of Abhay Raj Yadav since Feb 6.Tiwari said, “After recording the details of these missing persons, volunteers are coordinating with mela police and district police officials.” The volunteers are also in touch with families of missing persons and exchange updates daily. This Magh Mela, the volunteers of Bhoole Bhatke Shivir claimed to reunite 2,981 people with their families between Jan 1 and Feb 8.Ganga Prasad, whose son went missing on Jan 8, said, “With the majority of people arriving at the traditional Bhoole Bhatke Shivir, we too came here with a similar hope.” He added, “We shared information with mela and local police and hope that our missing family member is soon tracked.”
