The devotees will now be able to pay a visit to Mata Vaishno Devi. The pilgrimage to Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine near Katra starts from Sunday, August 16. However, the government has put a cap of only 2,000 pilgrims who can visit during the first week. Of the 2,000 pilgrims, 1900 will be from Jammu and Kashmir and 100 will be from outside the Union Territory.
The government authorities said that it will review the situation after a week and will accordingly take the decision to increase the number of pilgrims.
The Vaishno Devi Yatra will resume almost after 5 months. The pilgrimage to Mata Vaishno Devi was suspended on March 18 in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.
When the Ministry of Home Affairs, under its latest Unlock Guidelines, allowed operations at the places of worship, the Jammu and Kashmir government decided to open the religious places in the union territory.
However, the government has also issued advisories to be followed while on the pilgrimage. According to the J&K administration, children under the age of 10 will not be allowed to travel. Also, all the pilgrims will have to wear masks.
