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Vaishno Mata.

In view of the huge crowd of devotees on New Year, Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board has made important changes in the rules regarding the visit to Mata Vaishno Devi Temple located in Reasi district of Jammu. The Board has issued strict guidelines for both loading and unloading to prevent overcrowding in the building area, reduce the risk of accidents and strengthen emergency response mechanisms with better crowd management on the track.

According to the revised rules, now devotees will have to start their journey within 10 hours of receiving the Radio Frequency Identification Card (RFIDC). After darshan, it will be mandatory for the devotees to return to Katra base camp within maximum 24 hours. All these rules have been implemented with immediate effect.

Congestion and jam situation on the track

Earlier, there was no fixed time limit for starting the journey after getting the RFID card. Devotees could start the climb anytime as per their convenience and after darshan, stay in the building area for several days. Due to this, there was often a situation of congestion and jam in the building area and on the track.

Distance of Mata Vaishno Devi Bhawan from Katra is 13 kilometers.

The distance from Katra to Mata Vaishno Devi Bhawan is about 13 kilometers. Devotees can undertake this journey on foot, horse, carriage, battery car or helicopter. For a healthy person, it usually takes 6 to 8 hours to climb on foot and approximately the same time to descend. On normal days, the entire journey is completed in 24 to 36 hours, but on the occasion of New Year, due to the large number of devotees, it may take more time.

Mandatory to return after darshan within 24 hours

Devotees who come to see Mata Rani on the occasion of New Year are also aware of these new rules and are calling them a positive step. Devotees say that in the year 2023, due to uncontrolled crowd in the Mata Rani Bhawan area, a stampede-like situation had arisen, in which many devotees lost their lives. Keeping the same incident in mind, Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board has now implemented new rules. According to the new rules, it will be mandatory for the devotees to return from the building within 24 hours after having darshan of the Mata, so that the crowd can be controlled.

Strict security arrangements also

In view of the possibility of huge crowd on New Year, strict security arrangements have also been made. An impenetrable cordon of security has been prepared from Katra to Mata Vaishno Devi Bhawan. Every visitor is being constantly monitored through CCTV cameras at various places. Along with this, CRPF and Jammu and Kashmir Police have completely surrounded Katra city, regular checking of every incoming person and vehicle is being done so that any untoward incident can be prevented and devotees can have darshan of Mata Rani safely.