FACE-LIFT TEMPLES

Jammu which is popularly known as the ‘City of Temples’ should take the cue from Ramesh Kumar, CEO, Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board, who recently reviewed the status of Shankaracharya Temple located on the hillock at the eastern side of Katra town and has taken the decision to redevelop the aforesaid temple besides giving a new look to the area for boosting its economy. Similar initiatives could be taken in Jammu for face-lifting many temples which are facing neglect since last many years despite being the significant part of region’s rich heritage. As the age-old J&K Dharmarth Trust which is successfully looking after many shrines and temples in J&K has also time and again appealed to the government to provide assistance for face lifting the temples falling under its jurisdiction therefore the government should come up with a comprehensive plan to add sheen to the City of Temples by rejuvenating not one, not two but all the temples which need such facelift as the same can proved to be game changer as far as increasing tourist footfall is concerned. The Central Government has also come up with an exclusive scheme for religious tourism namely ‘PRASAD’ and the UT Government should ask the Centre to help rejuvenate the temples in the city under this flagship scheme better known as ‘Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual Augmentation Drive’. PRASAD scheme focuses on developing and identifying pilgrimage sites across India for enriching the religious tourism experience and to integrate pilgrimage destinations in a prioritised, planned and sustainable manner. For tapping the potential of pilgrimage tourism, there is a need for holistic development of the pilgrimage destinations by the government along with the cooperation of other stakeholders like Dharmarth Trust, etc. The major share of tourism benefits in Jammu region depends on pilgrimage tourism therefore to boost the local economy it is imperative for all the stakeholders including the government to focus on this aspect and provide all facilities to devotees and visitors of these temples as soon as possible besides face-lifting the same without any delay.

Editorial editorial article 1