Srinagar: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday visited the Kheer Bhawani temple in Ganderbal district to assess the arrangements for the upcoming annual ‘Mela’ at the shrine.
Hundreds of devotees, mostly Kashmiri Pandits, are expected to visit the temple of Ragnya Devi, popularly known as Mata Kheer Bhawani, at Tulmulla in the central Kashmir district, to celebrate the annual Mela on Monday.
Abdullah also paid obeisance at the temple, an official press release said.
“It is a sacred day. People come here from various parts of the country and world to pay obeisance and get blessings of the mata. I have come here in the capacity of the chief minister of J&K, and more so as the MLA Ganderbal, to assess the arrangements and review the preparations,” Abdullah told reporters after the visit.
The chief minister said he spoke to the priests and others at the temple who raised some issues about the arrangements and assured them that attempts will be made to address them before the Mela on June 22.
Accompanied by his Advisor, Nasir Aslam Wani; Political Advisor, Mudasir Shahmiri; Additional Chief Secretary to the Chief Minister, Dheeraj Gupta; Deputy Commissioner Ganderbal, Jatin Kishore; Senior Superintendent of Police Ganderbal, Sudhanshu Dhama and other officers, Omar Abdullah took spot inspection of various facilities being established for the convenience of devotees and reviewed preparations related to accommodation, drinking water supply, sanitation, power supply, healthcare services, security, traffic management and other essential arrangements.
Deputy Commissioner Ganderbal briefed the chief minister on the level of preparedness made for the smooth facilitation to the devotees vis-a-vis sanitation, drinking water supply, electricity, healthcare services, de-silting of Nallah, additional mobile toilets and other arrangements alongwith backup besides accommodation, and langar facilities, the press release said.
It said interacting with officers on the spot, the chief minister emphasized the significance of the annual Mela and directed all departments to work in close coordination to ensure that devotees are provided a safe, comfortable and spiritually fulfilling experience during their visit to the temple.
He stressed the need for maintaining high standards of cleanliness and hygiene in and around the temple premises and instructed the concerned departments to ensure uninterrupted availability of basic services throughout the Mela period.
The chief minister also reviewed arrangements for medical aid, emergency response services and transportation facilities. He directed the concerned agencies to remain fully prepared to promptly address any requirement of pilgrims and ensure smooth movement of devotees.
During the visit, members of the local community and representatives of various organizations interacted with the chief minister and expressed satisfaction over the arrangements being made for the annual pilgrimage.
Reaffirming the government’s commitment towards preserving the rich cultural and spiritual heritage of Jammu and Kashmir, the chief minister said that the annual Mata Kheer Bhawani Mela symbolizes the region’s age-old traditions of harmony, mutual respect and communal brotherhood.
To a question about the upcoming annual Amaranth Yatra, Abdullah said the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board oversees the arrangements for the pilgrimage which begins this year on July 3.
“The board oversees the Yatra and the biggest responsibility about the smooth Yatra lies with the board. However, whatever support we have to give from the government side, we are doing that,” he added.
The CM appealed to the pilgrims to pray for peace and brotherhood in Jammu and Kashmir.
“We hope that whether Mata Kheer Bhawani or Amamrnath Yatra, the pilgrims pay obeisance and pray smoothly. We hope that when they pray, they also pray for peace and brotherhood in J&K,” Abdullah said.
Asked about farmers facing irrigation issues in the constituency, the CM said the government is doing everything to mitigate the crisis.
“There are such reports from a few places, not the whole Ganderbal. Whatever can be done through canals, etc, is being done so that there is no lack of irrigation water. We thank God that it rained over the last few days and so, the water scarcity was mitigated a bit. But, I will send the Minister Javed Rana and officials to the spot wherever is needed so that whatever remains to be done, will be done,” he added.
When asked about the reports that Kashmiri Pandit colonies are being built in Shopian and Pulwama, the CM said those were transit accommodations and are being built everywhere.
“It is being built for PM package employees so that they get a good living space and work smoothly. The work started in PM Manmohan Singh’s time and is going on,” Abdullah said.
