In Jammu and Kashmir, amid multi-tier security arrangements, the nine-day-long festival of Shardiya Navratri began with religious fervour and gaiety, as over 45 thousand pilgrims undertake the pilgrimage daily to pay obeisance at the cave shrine of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi.
The Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board (SMVDSB), which manages the yatra, has started new registration counters at the Katra Railway Station to ease the process for the pilgrims in light of the expected influx during the Navratri period.
The Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Katra has been adorned with indigenous and foreign flowers, and large pandals have been set up in the Bhawan area for the auspicious occasion. Chief Executive Officer, Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board, Sachin Kumar Vaishya, has congratulated all the devotees on the occasion of Shardiya Navratri and welcomed them and hopes that thousands of pilgrims from across the globe will come to pay their obeisance.
