New Delhi: If you are preparing to go for darshan of Mata Vaishno Devi these days, then it has become very important to make online booking before the journey. Due to summer holidays, there is a huge crowd of devotees in Katra and Bhawan areas. The situation is such that advance booking of many services is already completely filled and registration centers are also having to be closed before the scheduled time. In such a situation, devotees traveling without planning may have to face a lot of trouble.
In view of the increasing number of devotees, Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board has appealed to the pilgrims to make online booking in advance. Advance booking of facilities like travel slip, accommodation, helicopter service, battery car, ropeway, horse, pitthu and palanquin can be done through the official website and mobile app of the board. Officials say that at present the crowd is very high, hence devotees who have not booked in advance may face difficulty in getting services.
More than three lakh devotees visited in one week
Long queues of devotees are being seen everywhere from Katra to Bhawan. During the last seven days, more than three lakh devotees have attended the court of Mata. The Shrine Board is continuously monitoring the Yatra route to control the crowd. Devotees are not being allowed to stay unnecessarily in Katra, Yatra Marg and building complex so that the pressure of crowd can be reduced. According to statistics, about 43 thousand to 50 thousand devotees are reaching Katra every day, due to which there is additional pressure on the arrangements.
What to do when the main center is closed?
In case of heavy crowd, sometimes the main registration centers are closed before the scheduled time. In such a situation, devotees having online travel slip can get their RFID card from the registration centers located at the entry points of Darshani Deodhi and Tarakot Marg. In recent times, due to crowd, registration centers have had to be closed prematurely many times. On June 6, the centers were closed about two hours before the scheduled time. Even on Sunday, the registration process had to be stopped in the evening.
Registration centers are closing prematurely
The impact of the continuously increasing number of devotees is visible on all the major services related to the Yatra. The demand for facilities like helicopters, battery cars, ropeways and accommodation has increased rapidly. According to the Shrine Board, keeping in mind the environment and safety guidelines, only a limited number of devotees are allowed to visit every day. For this reason, to control the crowd, registration centers often have to be closed before time. Even on Monday night, the registration process was closed before the scheduled time. At that time thousands of devotees were waiting for the Yatra to start in Katra.
Devotees are waiting a long time
At present, devotees have to wait for a long time at registration centres, security check posts, building premises and darshan places. Many passengers have to stand in queues for hours. To keep the crowd organized, the administration and Shrine Board employees are constantly monitoring the arrangements so that the devotees do not face any inconvenience.
Online advance booking almost full
Most of the online bookings for helicopters, battery cars, ropeways and accommodation services available in the building area are full for the next several days. In such a situation, challenges may increase for people planning a sudden trip. However, special facilities are being provided for elderly devotees, disabled persons and seriously ill passengers. The Shrine Board has appealed to the pilgrims to complete all the necessary booking and registration processes before setting out on the journey, so that they do not have to face any kind of problem.
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