Since October 11 till now, more than 3.81 lakh devotees have had darshan of Mata.
Jammu. There was a huge crowd of devotees during Shardiya Navratri in Mata Vaishno Devi temple located in Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir and since October 11 till now, more than 3.81 lakh devotees have had darshan of Mata. Officials gave this information on Monday. Officials said that the number of devotees is likely to increase further on the occasion of Dussehra.
The yatra is continuing smoothly amid clear weather and festive atmosphere at the temple base camp Katra. A senior official said, during Shardiya Navratri, till 2 pm on Monday, 3.81 lakh devotees have visited the holy cave of Mata Vaishno Devi located on Trikuta hills.
Shardiya Navratri is one of the two major Navratri festivals celebrated in the year. The second is Chaitra Navratri. Shardiya Navratri is organized in autumn during September-October. According to officials, 3.62 lakh devotees visited Mata in the first eight days of Navratri, while on Monday also a large number of devotees paid obeisance in the court of Mata.
How many devotees visited on which day?
According to the data, a total of 47,574 devotees visited Mata on October 11. After this, 48,400 devotees visited on 12th October, 46,558 devotees on 13th October, 41,961 devotees on 14th October and 39,951 devotees visited on 15th October. At the same time, on October 16, 41,750 devotees reached the temple, while on October 17, 48,500 devotees paid obeisance in the court of Mata. On 18 October, 47,700 devotees registered for the yatra. Officials said that till Monday afternoon, more than 20,000 devotees have left for Mata Ka Bhavan.
Katra city was decorated with colorful flowers
The number of devotees is expected to increase further on the occasion of Dussehra. Traditionally, during this festival, a large number of devotees come to have darshan of the Mother Goddess. The nine-day Shatchandi Mahayagya, organized with prayers and Vedic rituals at the Yagyashala on the temple premises, continued for the ninth day on Monday. Mata's court, Yatra Marg and Katra city are decorated with flowers and colorful lights. Strict security arrangements have been made to keep the journey safe and smooth.
Special facilities for disabled people
Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board has made special arrangements for disabled devotees including free horse and battery operated vehicle service, darshan on priority basis and special centers for assistance. Apart from this, basic facilities like drinking water, sanitation and medical aid have been provided along the yatra route. Emergency support teams have also been deployed at key locations along the route.
More than two lakh devotees visited Kali Mata
Officials in Jammu said that more than two lakh devotees visited Mata Kali temple amid huge crowd on Monday. This temple is popularly known as 'Bawe Wali Mata'. Himachal Pradesh Governor Kavinder Gupta, leader of opposition and senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Sunil Sharma and Punjabi actress Preeti Sapru also visited the temple.