Haridwar, April 15 -- A huge number of devotees from across the country on Tuesday took a sacred dip in the Ganga river at Haridwar, Rishikesh and the Panch Prayag region in the Garhwal division on the occasion of Baisakhi. Starting early in the day, devotees were seen thronging the ghats to take the ritual bath. Pilgrims gathered at the five confluences of the Panch Prayag - Devprayag, Rudraprayag, Karnaprayag, Nandaprayag and Vishnuprayag - as part of the traditional observance. District magistrate of Haridwar Mayur Dixit and senior superintendent of police (SSP) of Haridwar district Navneet Singh Bhullar reviewed traffic management, security arrangements and crowd control measures along with subordinate officials. "Baisakhi bath proceedings were conducted smoothly with elaborate security arrangements in place. Bomb disposal squad, sniffer dog squad, mounted cavalry unit, Provincial Armed Constabulary and Jal Police personnel were deployed at Ganga ghats and across the core mela zone. Additional temporary parking lots were also created along with a traffic diversion plan in view of the increased vehicular movement and devotees' turnout," said SSP Bhullar. Mela officials said the security and traffic management plan implemented for the Baisakhi bath was carried out effectively and the experience would help authorities in planning arrangements for the next year's Ardh Kumbh fair baths....