Millions of devout Hindus thronged the northern Indian city of Prayagraj on Thursday for the Maha Kumbh festival, a day after dozens died in a stampede at the largest gathering of humanity in the world.

Millions of devout Hindus thronged the northern Indian city of Prayagraj on Thursday for the Maha Kumbh festival, a day after dozens died in a stampede on the most auspicious day of the six-week event.

Over 45.11 lakh pilgrims visited the Mahakumbh till 8 am on Thursday, the Uttar Pradesh Information Department said in a release.

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Milind Soman wrote, "These are the moments that make you realise the importance of our very insignificant existence"

Actor and model Milind Soman, along with his wife Ankita Konwar, took a holy dip at the Triveni Sangam during the ongoing Mahakumbh Mela in Prayagraj on Mauni Amavasya.

Nearly 40 people were killed in India's northern state of Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday and several others injured in a pre-dawn stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela - a Hindu religious festival touted to be the largest human gathering in the world.

Many were feared dead after millions of Hindu pilgrims at a huge Hindu festival in India rushed to bathe in holy river waters.