Chief Executive Officer of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board, (SMVDSB) Ramesh Kumar has said that the Shrine Board is in the process of formulating Standard Operating Procedure for the resumption of the Yatra once the lockdown is lifted even as the pilgrimage will start only when directions from Home Ministry are issued. He was addressing a video conference on the topic ‘Way Forward For Tourism and Shri Vaishno Devi Yatra Post-COVID-19’.
The Board is considering to undertake online registration of devotees while GPS-enabled systems are also under consideration to track pilgrims in real-time to ensure they adhere to social distancing measures.
SMVDSB is also considering installing of door-mounted thermal scanning at multiple places en-route the Bhawan while the bed capacity at free dormitories is being reduced temporarily to implement social distancing measures. Only family members and not unrelated people, are going to be permitted to use the paid lodging to reduce the chances of the spread of the infection.
The Board is also planning for the reduction in quota of Yatra to 33 per cent for initial few months and restricting the Yatra to some of neighbouring states till the situation improves. Pertinently, the Vaishno Devi pilgrimage contributes vigorously towards economy of not only J&K but adjoining states as well due to this lockdown, four to five lakh people have become unemployed with a daily loss of 10-12 crore rupees per day.
Discussion about this post