Headlines
UP to take Muslims, Hindus together for pilgrimage
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By Mohit DubeyLucknow, June 25
The Uttar Pradesh government
has chalked out a first-of-its-kind plan to take a group of Hindus and
Muslims on a joint pilgrimage.
The 'dharmarth karya' department
has issued a government order (GO) in which 10 Muslim and Hindu devouts
from each district will be taken on a pilgrimage in a single trip,
including a visit to Pushkar and Ajmer Sharif in Rajasthan.
Pushkar is holy for Hindus while Ajmer Sharif is venerated by Muslims as well as people of other faiths.
Principal
Secretary (Religious Works) Navneet Sehgal told IANS that the process
of receiving applications and subsequently sorting them out has begun in
all the 75 districts of Uttar Pradesh.
"The idea is not only to
provide better travel opprtunities to the residents of UP and the
elderly but also to promote communal harmony," the official said.
The
tour will be conducted by the state government, under the ongoing
Samajwadi Shravan Yatra - a state sponsored pilgrimage started a few
months back, with help of the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism
Corporation (IRCTC).
A special train with arrangement for 1,044 berths has been booked for the pilgrimage.
The
proposed date for the pilgrimage is July 23 and the department is
working to ensure that the 'yatra' takes off on time, officials say.
This
time the state government has also made online registration facilities
available for people. The devout will have to submit documents required
for availing the trip along with an application.
The applications are invited till July 10 after which these would be sorted out and travel tickets issued.
In
the first round, 900 devotees were taken to Haridwar and Rishikesh in
Uttarakhand. In this trip to Ajmer Sharif and Pushkar Teerth Raj in
Rajasthan, the pilgrims would be getting air-conditioned luxury buses
after the train journey to travel to their destinations.
The pilgrims would be provided budget lodging and given a travel kit.
"Other
than this, they would be given morning tea, breakfast, lunch, evening
tea - only on the train journey - and a nutritious dinner," said Sehgal.
(Mohit Dubey can be contacted at [email protected])