The Hindu : Over a lakh visit Vaishno Devi temple

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Apr 12, 2003

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Over a lakh visit Vaishno Devi temple

By Our Staff Reporter

KATRA APRIL 11. Notwithstanding the reported terrorist threat to the Vaishno Devi temple in Jammu and Kashmir, over a lakh pilgrims from across the country have visited the shrine during the nine-day Navratra festival, which started on April 2 and ended today.

Around 15,000 pilgrims arrived daily at Katra, base camp for their onward 13-km trek to Bhawan, situated more than 40 km from Jammu city. The massive information campaign conducted by the State police and the Mata Vashino Devi Shrine Board assuring people of their safety seem to have paid off. The tourists' figures, which had down last year due to incidents of violence, have gone up again.

Police officials also denied reports linking the recent terrorist attack on a police post at Ind village in Gool tehsil to a possible attack on the Vaishno Devi shrine. The rush has gladdened the hearts of traders and hoteliers of the area and the overall mood is upbeat. It has also come as a boost to the moribund economy of Jammu, hard hit by a series of suicide attacks. This time, the rush was particularly high from Gujarat, with heavily loaded buses coming from Ahmedabad, Baroda, Kutch and Rajkot. Taking advantage of the rush, authorities have announced the starting of the Jammu festival to show case the cultural heritage.

The Tourism Minister, Ghulam Hasan Mir, said: "The rush to the shrine needs to be maintained as we want the pilgrims to enjoy the beauty of the State and visits other places also".

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