Delhi CM Kejriwal flags off first pilgrim train to Ayodhya
Launched in 2019, the government pilgrimage scheme allows Delhi residents to undertake subsidised tours to popular pilgrim sites across the country
Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal flagged off on Friday the first pilgrim train to Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh, launched under the ”Mukhyamantri Tirth Yatra Yojna”, from the Safdarjung railway station.
Launched in 2019, the government scheme allows Delhi residents to undertake subsidised tours to popular pilgrim sites across the country and three new sites — Ayodhya, Kartarpur Sahib and Velankanni — were added last month to the list of available tour options, said officials.
The maiden train to Ayodhya set off on Friday, but not before some minor hiccups. Kejriwal said the central government did not grant permission to hold a programme at the station to see off the first set of pilgrims. “I want to tell the central government that this type of behaviour is not right,” he said.
Chief public relations officer, Northern Railway, Deepak Kumar said no function can be allowed because of safety and operations at the railway stations. He said that despite the restriction, there was massive rush at the station.
The train carrying 1,000 pilgrims was flagged off by Kejriwal and it finally set off for Ayodhya around 7.20pm. The chief minister met and spoke with several pilgrims before they seeing them off. “If anyone gets a chance to undertake a pilgrimage in their twilight years, then their happiness knows no bounds. I loved meeting the pilgrims and seeing them so happy,” Kejriwal said.
He added that due to Covid-19 pandemic, the pilgrimage tours under the state government scheme had to be stopped, but now that Covid cases have reduced, the government has restarted the tours. “Now, the trains will go everywhere, including three new pilgrim sites, he said.
The pilgrim tours scheme was launched by the government in July 2019 and a total of 1,100 residents per assembly constituency can avail of this facility a year, subject to a cap of 77,000 beneficiaries per year, officials said.
Since its formal launch, a total of 35,080 beneficiaries have travelled under the scheme. Originally, the scheme had provisions to visit 12 religious sites, but three new places — Ayodhya, Kartarpur Sahib and Velankanni — were added last month.
The sites under the free pilgrimage scheme now are Anandpur Sahib, Ajmer-Pushkar, Rameshwaram-Madurai, Jagannath Puri-Konark, Vaishno Devi, Tirupati Balaji, Mathura-Vrindavan-Fatehpur Sikri, Haridwar-Rishikesh-Neelkanth, Dwarikadhish-Somnath, Shirdi-Shani Shingnapur-Trimbakeshwar, Ujjain-Omkareshwar, Gaya-Varanasi, Ayodhya, Velankanni and Kartarpur Sahib.
A government official said passengers going from Delhi to Velankanni will be provided a seat in an AC three-tier compartment by the Delhi government, while a plan has been made to send Delhi pilgrims to Kartarpur Sahib by deluxe AC buses.
The first batch of passengers on an AC bus from Delhi to Kartarpur Sahib will leave on January 5, 2022, and the first train carrying passengers from Delhi to Velankanni will leave on January 7, 2022.