The next Kumbh mela will be held here in 2013. The Kumbh mela is held every three years at one of the following places: Haridwar, Allahabad, Nashik and Ujjain.
Spiritual leader, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar explains the deeper meaning of Kashi and attaining salvation: Kashi lies between Rivers Yamuna and Assi. These rivers correspond with the Ida and Pingla Nadis in humans. When a person is centered in wisdom, Kashi, the Sushumna Nadi which lies in the middle of Ida and Pingla Nadis, when he breathes his last, salvation is available.
A cool canal just outside IIT Kanpur provides the perfect setting for feathered friends to thrive in. The birds seen here are a common sample of the fauna of the Gangetic plains. Crows, mynas, sparrows, babblers, warblers, barbets, bee eaters, drongos, cuckoos, parrots, tree pies, owls, kingfishers, red wattled lapwings, pink flecked doves, ghughoo, munias, sunbirds, kites, bahmini mynas, robins, orioles, sarus cranes and peacocks are some of the familiar birds in Uttar Pradesh.
Enjoy the kaleidoscopic coming and going of families from cities and villages for bathing and worshipping here. Walk a little further up from Har ki Pauri to find almost vacant ghats behind the looming Lord Shiva statue on the highway to Rishikesh. Geese, gulls and a few black cormorants are great company here.