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The Maha Kumbh at Prayagraj and the Simhastha Mela of Ujjain are among the prominent religious events featured in the collection of more than 100 rare stamps and special postal covers preserved by two philatelists in Indore.
Their collections boast of a special cover focusing on the Maha Kumbh held at Prayagraj in 1977 and a “bazaar postcard” (used for writing letters before independence) of the Maha Kumbh in the Uttar Pradesh city in 1906.
“I have been going to the Maha Kumbh fair held in Prayagraj since childhood. I have always been quite interested in this religious event and that is why I started collecting postage stamps and special covers related to it,” philatelist Omprakash Kedia (73) told PTI on Monday.
Since the number of postage stamps and special covers issued on the Prayagraj Maha Kumbh and Ujjain Simhastha is very limited, it is very difficult to find them, he said.
Kedia said a special cover focusing on the Maha Kumbh fair held in Prayagraj during 1977, which he acquired from a seller at an exhibition. is the oldest item in his collection.
Another city-based philatelist Alok Khadiwala (53) said he has also preserved postage stamps and special covers issued for Maha Kumbh and Simhastha fairs held in the past years.
The most valuable part of his treasure is the “bazaar card” focusing on the 1906 Prayagraj Maha Kumbh, he said.
“Bazaar cards were used as letters before the country`s independence,” he added.
Khadiwala said that to include the postage stamps and special covers issued on Maha Kumbh and Simhastha fairs in his collection, he also took the help of junk dealers from different places and rummaged through several waste paper sacks.
Kedia and Khadiwala`s collections also include ancient coins bought by devotees as souvenirs at different pilgrimage sites in the country.
The ongoing Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj started on January 13 will continue till February 26. The next Simhastha Mela will be in held in Madhya Pradesh`s Ujjain in 2028.
The Maha Kumbh and the Simhastha are held at these major pilgrimage sites of Hindus every 12 years.
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