KISHTWAR: Officials said on Tuesday that The annual Machail Mata yatra in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district is picking up pace with over 30,000 devotees already paying obeisance at the 9,705-feet-high shrine.The devotees can now walk to the shrine on foot thanks to the partially completed Pradhan Mantri Gramme Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) road, which they claim will reduce travel time by roughly two hours and make the journey less exhausting compared to the steep and difficult terrains. The picturesque Paddar valley in Kishtwar is the location of the 43-day yatra, which began on July 25 and will end on September 5. With the advent of the holy “Charri Yatra” from Jammu to Machail on August 18, the number of people visiting the shrine is set to rise significantly.With the opening of the PMGSY route by the district administration Kishtwar on August 5, an official stated that the yatra has been changed into a more cosy, joyful, and secure journey for pilgrims travelling on foot. According to him, the district government this year, under the direction of Deputy Commissioner Devansh Yadav, has taken extensive steps to help the pilgrims make their yatra an unforgettable one. According to the official, these include the construction of a 30 KW hybrid solar power plant, a 4G Airtel tower, and energy for Machail Village, which will ease the pilgrims’ strenuous spiritual trek.In order to accommodate and welcome the pilgrims during their journey, he added, facilities like tent city at Machail, Yatri Bhawan, Sapphire guest house, and luxurious mushroom tents at base camp Gulabgarh have been set up. He claimed that the Machail Mata yatra has great spiritual and cultural significance and is still a beloved destination for pilgrims all over the nation. The official called the development of PMGSY road a “major milestone” and claimed that the department in question quickly and successfully cleared the difficult, rocky section of Machail road. This road, which pilgrims now use to travel up to Hamouri village on foot, has made great progress thanks to road cutting in a difficult rocky section, he said. To get to the shrine, pilgrims had to walk a distance of roughly 22 km, but the official claimed that when the road was built, the trip time was reduced from 1.5 to 2 hours. Additionally, according to the officials, the Army’s placement of railings on the Mov bridge has substantially improved pilgrims’ safety while travelling.
