All kanwar routes in U.P fortified

Lucknow, July 6   The 840 kanwar yatra routes leading to around 4,556 Shiva temples in Uttar Pradesh have been fortified during the ongoing auspicious month of Shravan.

Lucknow, July 6 The 840 kanwar yatra routes leading to around 4,556 Shiva temples in Uttar Pradesh have been fortified during the ongoing auspicious month of Shravan.

Police personnel have been deployed on the routes spanning nearly 12,535 kilometres and special officers, helicopters have been pressed into service for aerial vigil on these routes.

Senior police officials also said the steps were in consonance with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s directive to ensure the safety and security of all pilgrims during this auspicious month.

Several companies of Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) and Central Paramilitary Forces, as well as civil police personnel, are part of the security arrangements on the kanwar yatra routes, besides at Shiva temples, rivers and ghats as well as 314 sites of Sawan melas and pilgrim camps.

Over 1,500 meetings were held with kanwaria organisations, which set up roadside camps offering food, water, bedding, and washroom facilities for devotees, the officials said.

Meetings were also held with the authorities of temples to discuss security deployment and crowd management. The kanwar yatra is marked by devotees of Lord Shiva undertaking an arduous trek, mostly on foot, to collect water from various rivers, including the Ganga and the Saryu, and ghats across the state.

The devotees then offer the water to Shivlings in temples in their localities or those situated in historical places. ‘Shivratri’ on July 15-16 is the main occasion of the Jalabhishek ritual. The month of Shravan began on July 4 and will conclude on August 30 this year.

--IANS