The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has partnered with blockchain company Chaincode Consulting to launch Non-Fungible Token (NFT) tickets based on Polygon for the annual religious festival Maha Kumbh Mela. This not only combines railway ticketing with local historical culture, but also provides a new digital experience for global participants.
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ToggleThe Maha Kumbh Mela is the largest religious festival in the world
The Maha Kumbh Mela is held once every 12 years, attracting tens of millions of devotees from India and around the world to bathe in the sacred rivers of India and perform purification rituals. The word "Kumbh" refers to the "pot" that symbolizes the mythological pot of nectar of immortality in Hindu mythology.
The festival originates from Hindu mythology, which says that the gods and demons engaged in a fierce battle to obtain the pot of nectar, and the nectar fell at four sacred sites in India: Prayagraj, Haridwar, Ujjain, and Nashik, which are considered the holy sites for the Kumbh Mela.
The Prayagraj Maha Kumbh Mela in 2013 set a record of over 100 million participants, and was also inscribed by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
The uniqueness of this year's Maha Kumbh Mela is that it coincides with the 12th Kumbh cycle in 144 years. Additionally, the special alignment of the sun, earth, moon, and Jupiter, which only occurs once in 144 years, makes this year's Maha Kumbh Mela particularly sacred and special.
Indian railway company uses NFT tickets to welcome the religious festival
The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) plans to provide NFT tickets for pilgrims attending the Maha Kumbh Mela, marking the first-ever integration of Indian historical culture and blockchain technology, digitizing the spiritual journey of the hundreds of millions of pilgrims attending the festival.
According to the announcement from blockchain company Chaincode Consulting, the NFT tickets will be issued on the Polygon network and made available to travelers on the NFTtrace platform.
A global initiative to integrate culture and technology
This NFT ticket initiative is not the first of its kind. Last year, IRCTC had already launched limited edition NFT tickets during the Holi festival, successfully attracting global travelers.
Holi has also been inscribed by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, attracting international celebrities such as American actor Richard Tiffany Gere and the Dalai Lama. This year, Laurene Jobs, the widow of Apple's former CEO Steve Jobs, is also expected to participate in the festival.
NFT tickets are not only certificates, but also cultural souvenirs
IRCTC states that the issuance of NFT tickets is not only a certificate of participation in the festival, but also symbolizes India's rich cultural traditions and innovative spirit, as well as an important way to digitally preserve historical cultural records. Through blockchain technology, ticket data can be verified by the public and relevant departments, further enhancing transparency and security. IRCTC also plans to promote the application of NFTs in other cultural events in the future, using technology to support cultural heritage.
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