STATE TIMES NEWS
KATRA: Shat Chandi Maha Yagya began with onset of auspicious nine-day long ‘Sharad Navratras’ on Monday at the Holy Cave Shrine of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi, amidst grand decorations organized by Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board.
The Maha Yagya which is being performed by chanting of Vedic hymns with other religious ceremonies at the holy cave shrine for peace, prosperity, health, safety and well being of mankind, will conclude with Purna Ahuti on Mahanavami.
It is being telecast on Shraddha MH One channel from 11: 30 AM to 1:00 PM daily during Navratras.
K K Sharma, Member Shrine Board; Anshul Garg, CEO of the Board; Sudhir Bali, SDM Bhawan; Ajay Salaan, Asstt. CEO, besides, other senior officers of Board and a large number of pilgrims were present on the occasion.
On this festive occasion, as per the directions of Chairman (Lt. Governor, JK-UT), Shrine Board has been providing free pony and battery car services to ‘Divyang’ devotees with special arrangements for their priority Darshans at sanctum sanctorum by setting up of help desks for their convenience at various locations.
Noteworthy, RFID -based tracking and dispatching pilgrims in batches, a focused initiative of Shrine Board for Yatra Management to ensure their safety, comfort and ease of commutation has already been rolled out by the Shrine Board well before commencement of Navratra.
In addition, erecting welcome gates, the Shrine Board has unveiled special selfie-points for the first time en-route the Holy shrine for the pilgrims to capture fond memories of their visit during Navratra.
Like in the past, the Board has also made elaborate arrangements to facilitate a much larger number of pilgrims who are likely to visit Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine during Navratras.
These arrangements include round the clock water and power supply, sanitation and cleanliness, medicare and availability of special “fast related” food at the catering outlets of the Shrine Board.
Grand decorations are made at Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Bhawan, Atka and the area surrounding it with indigenous-foreign fruits and flowers, as well as huge reception doors and pandals are installed in the Bhawan Area. Likewise, the illumination of the Bhawan area with attractive and colorful lights has also been done. The breathtaking and festive decorations are a special visual delight for pilgrims who trek about 12km from Katra to Bhawan.
Also, as was done in last year’s Shardiya Navratras, this year’s other special features of arrangements included Bhajan and Bhaint performances during morning and evening Atka Aarti by the renowned artists.
The CEO interacted with the pilgrims and enquired about the arrangements made by the board to facilitate them. He expressed satisfaction at the arrangements put in place for the pilgrims at Bhawan and Katra.