Toyota River Drive: Lower Ganga: Final blog
After leaving Varanasi the day before, we headed to Prayagraj (formerly Allahabad). It was short 127km drive through some of the most polluted areas I have seen in India. So much that visibility became a major issue during the day and almost a horror movie scene during the night. The main reason for this pollution is again rampant construction activities, stubble burning and heavy vehicle traffic. In these situations, it would have been extremely tough to drive without the bi-beam LED headlamps on the Toyota Corolla Altis that provided ample illumination.
Upon reaching Allahabad, we realized that most parts of the city boast a Mughal-era charm as many important structures were built by Mughal emperors. The Allahabad fort on the banks of the river is an ancient fort built by Akbar while the Khusro Bagh houses the tomb of Jehangir’s son, Prince Khusro. But more importantly, the city is known for the Sangam of three rivers, Ganga, Yamuna and the ‘invisible’ Saraswati, which is said to make its presence felt underwater. Though, massive development and camp building activities were taking place by the banks of the Triveni as the Kumbh Mela, one of the largest pilgrimages and human gatherings in the world is set to take place in January. The occasion arises once every 12 years where more than three crore worshippers are expected to gather to worship the river gods.
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It has been a long, adventurous and a joyous journey as we charted the course of the lower Ganga within a week’s time. We drove through three massive states of India: West Bengal, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. From fishing towns of West Bengal to the historically rich places in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh it has been a fantastic journey with the Toyota Corolla Altis. The composure of the Altis’ ride quality and an extremely refined, smooth yet robust diesel engine perfectly represents the calmness of the lower Ganga river. We’ve clocked more than 4000km with the Altis, and it has kept us safe and cocooned in comfort.
