The first train to Ayodhya as part of the Delhi government’s free pilgrimage scheme for senior citizens will leave on December 3, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal announced on Wednesday.
He also added the Velankanni church in Tamil Nadu to government’s list of free pilgrimage sites for Christian residents of the national capital.
“Last month, I visited the Ram temple in Ayodhya. After returning, I got Ayodhya included in the Delhi government’s Mukhya Mantri Teerth Yatra Yojna. Today, I am happy to announce that the first train for Ayodhya with the city’s senior citizens will leave from Delhi on December 3. Every senior citizen can bring a young attendant to take care of them. The cost of both will be borne by the government,” Kejriwal said in a digital press briefing.
The chief minister said that, on the demand of the city’s Christian community, the Delhi government will also include a free pilgrimage trip to Velankanni Church soon.
“Many Christians wish to go to Velankanni Church. We are going to include Velankanni Church in the list of pilgrimage very soon and you will also be able to go on pilgrimage as per your wish. May everyone be blessed and be happy and healthy by the grace of God,” he said.
{{/usCountry}}“Many Christians wish to go to Velankanni Church. We are going to include Velankanni Church in the list of pilgrimage very soon and you will also be able to go on pilgrimage as per your wish. May everyone be blessed and be happy and healthy by the grace of God,” he said.
{{/usCountry}}The Ram Mandir is an emotive issue in Uttar Pradesh, where Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party has decided to contest the assembly elections early next year. Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh on Wednesday said that seat-sharing talks have begun with the Samajwadi Party to set up a common platform against the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the state.
Under the Mukhya Mantri Teerth Yatra Yojna, Hindu pilgrims who are over 60 years of age can also visit Vaishno Devi, Shirdi, Rameswaram, Dwarka, Puri, Haridwar, Rishikesh, Mathura, Vrindavan, among others and Sikh residents have the option to do a Delhi-Amritsar-Wagha Border-Anandpur Sahib-Delhi tour for four days.
Senior citizens availing of the free pilgrimage scheme are issued certificates by the MLAs of their respective areas, ministers of the Delhi government, or the chairman of the Tirth Yatra Vikas Samiti. The Delhi government bears all the expenses on the pilgrimage, including travel, food and accommodation. Facilities such as paramedical staff and attendants are also provided during the journey
The scheme was approved by the Kejriwal government in 2018. So far, over 36,000 people have availed the scheme. The Delhi-Ayodhya-Delhi tour will be the 13th destination and the Delhi-Velankanni church-Delhi route will be the 14th once it is officially approved by the Cabinet.
Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor said, “The BJP hopes these yatras will continue beyond ensuing municipal polls, unlike the past when the Arvind Kejriwal government launched Tirth Yatra Scheme in mid-2019 and stalled it after the assembly elections in January 2020. No one heard about the scheme from the Delhi government till October 2021,” said .