Lucknow, Nov 20 (IANS) Gearing up for the Kumbh Mela, one of the largest religious gatherings in the world, beginning January in Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh will set up makeshift rest-halts along road routes in several districts for the convenience of the pilgrims, officials said Friday.

The makeshift rest-halts, to be set up by the Uttar Pradesh Transport Department, will have eating joints, drinking water facilities, proper sitting arrangements and other basic facilities for people visiting the holy event in Uttarakhand's Haridwar district.

The work for setting up the makeshift halts, that would also have adequate parking facilities, has been entrusted to district magistrates.

The makeshift halts are to come up in a number of districts including Bijnor, Rampur, Bareilly, Saharanpur, Moradabad and Pilibhit.

'We have been directed to ensure that pilgrims do not face any kind of difficulty related to basic facilities,' Bijnor district magistrate Sanyukta Samatdar told IANS.

'As per the instructions related to Kumbh preparations, we have already identified two locations for setting up the makeshift halts, equipped with basic amenities. Moreover, at the two places a total of nearly 200 buses can also be parked,' she added.

The Kumbh Mela is scheduled to start Jan 14 on the occasion of Makar Sankranti, considered an auspicious day on the Hindu calendar, and is expected to see an influx of 15 million pilgrims - many of whom will come from distant lands.