Pilgrims flock to Vaishno Devi shrine

As the Navaratra festival, being celebrated across the country, enters the third day on Friday, over one lakh pilgrims flocked to the Vaishno Devi temple at Katra base camp in Trikuta hills of Jammu and Kashmir.

"Over one lakh pilgrims have visited the holy cave shrine of Vaishno Devi in the first three days of Navratra this year. The rush of pilgrims have begun to pick up," an official of the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board said.

While 32,625 pilgrims visited the shrine on the first day of Navaratra on September 30, another 28,808 pilgrims visited the temple on the second day. Around 34,989 devotees also visited the shrine on Thursday, the board said.

During same period in 2007, as many as 1,14,464 pilgrims visited the cave shrine showing a marked decrease of nearly 14,400 devotees visiting the temple this year.

Meanwhile, the number of pilgrims who paid their obeisance at the holy cave shrine from January this year has gone up to about 50 lakh, they said.

In September, as many as 4,13,840 pilgrims visited the cave shrine.

The board, while taking up several measures to accommodate the pilgrims, has made special arrangements to perform havan and puja at its bhawan during the Navratra. It has also arranged for Chattchandi yagya and other traditional rituals at the shrine coinciding with the festival.

A large number of priests are performing puja and paath which will conclude on Mahanavmi with Purna Ahooti ceremony.