Jammu: Amid heavy rainfall in Katra town on Monday, the pilgrimage to Mata Vaishno Devi shrine remained suspended for the seventh consecutive day in Reasi district since a landslide on a yatra route claimed 34 lives last Tuesday.
The Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board said it has cancelled all bookings, including helicopters and accommodations, with a 100 percent refund until the yatra is resumed.
“Yatra has remained suspended for the past one week. Bad weather conditions still persist, so the decision to continue the suspension of yatra has been taken keeping in view the safety of pilgrims,” an official said.
Heavy rains began in Katra and the Trikuta hills, the abode of the Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine, on Monday.
Helicopter services from Katra to Bhawan, ropeway rides from Bhawan to Bhairon Ghati, hotel accommodations, and other yatra-related bookings have all been cancelled, officials said.
“All bookings stand cancelled with 100 percent refund until the yatra is suspended. Send cancellation requests with details to refund@maavaishnodevi.net .
“Earlier self-cancellations will receive pending refunds within 15 days,” the Board announced on X.
Reasi district is one of the worst-hit areas in the Union Territory due to the current spell of heavy rains. A landslide triggered by a cloudburst struck the route to the shrine at Adhkuwari in the Trikuta hills of the Katra belt last Tuesday, killing 34 pilgrims and injuring 20 others.
The yatra was suspended on Tuesday last till further orders. It was followed by the constitution of a high-level three-member inquiry committee by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha.
The committee will be spearheaded by Shaleen Kabra, Additional Chief Secretary of the Department of Jal Shakti, J&K, and will also include the Divisional Commissioner and the Inspector General of Police, Jammu.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary had accused the Lieutenant Governor administration of allowing the yatra to the cave shrine despite a warning on the weather front.
The Shrine Board has refuted allegations of allowing the yatra to proceed in disregard of weather advisories and at the cost of pilgrim safety, saying that the pilgrimage was suspended at noon on August 26, ahead of the cloudburst that triggered the landslide.
Jammu-Katra shuttle service started to ferry stranded passengers, locals
The Northern Railways on Monday started a shuttle service between Jammu and Katra, the base camp of the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine, to facilitate the movement of locals and stranded passengers.
Four trains have been inducted in the Jammu-Katra section for the shuttle service that will operate from September 1 to 15.
“The shuttle service has been started between Jammu and Katra to facilitate the movement of daily passengers and stranded persons besides labourers engaged in restoration work,” a Railway official said. These included government employees and students.
Rail traffic has remained suspended in the Jammu railway division for the past one week due to misalignment and breaches at multiple locations in the Pathankot-Jammu section following heavy rains and flash floods on August 26.
Over 50 trains were cancelled on Monday.
However, Railways has been running special trains to ferry stranded passengers to their destinations from Jammu over the past four days. A total of 5,784 stranded passengers have been ferried in seven trains from Jammu for their onward journey.
Scores of people, especially pilgrims, were stranded as heavy rains lashed the Jammu region since August 26, severely disrupting rail and road traffic.
A landslide near the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Katra claimed 34 lives.
