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| Old footpath to Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine set for revival | | Rs 15 Crore project raises hopes for residents of 25 villages who took pilgrims to holy shrine for decades | |  Muskan Thakur
Early Times Report
JAMMU, Oct 2: The old footpath that once carried generations of Jammu pilgrims to Mata Vaishno Devi may soon come back to life. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday accorded administrative approval for restoring the traditional pilgrimage route to the cave shrine, via Bamyal, at an estimated cost of Rs 15 crore.
The Chief Minister said the project aims to preserve the route's heritage while strengthening infrastructure and improving facilities for pilgrims. The work will focus on restoring and upgrading the track to make the journey smoother, safer and more convenient for devotees, without erasing its historical and cultural character. Development of pilgrimage infrastructure, he stressed, must go hand in hand with preservation of the traditional character of religious sites in Jammu and Kashmir.
The decision comes at a time when the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway, the main artery to Katra, is struggling. Traffic congestion has become routine, and widening work has added to the delays.
Residents of about 25 villages along the old track have long argued that the answer lies in an alternative route. Their proposal is to divert pilgrims from Nagrota through Bamyal to Katra via the ancient Deva Mai temple. Before buses began carrying pilgrims, this was the main walking route for devotees from most parts of the Jammu region. The traffic pattern shifted with the bus service, and the track For the villages, the stakes go beyond traffic. More than 25 villages on this ancient track still lack basic amenities such as drinking water, electricity and road connectivity. Villagers hope that reopening the route will change their fortunes and bring economic activity to settlements on both sides of the road.
Locals say the highway can no longer bear the load. “During the rainy season, the highway remains closed for hours because of landslides, so it is imperative to create an exclusive route for Vaishno Devi pilgrims, so that they can reach Katra without facing traffic jams,”, locals said.
The risk of landslides has grown. The Nagrota-Domail stretch was once considered safe, but repeated soil erosion during the monsoon has made spots near Saketar and Nandani prone to landslides. An alternative route through Bamyal would let pilgrims bypass these danger zones.
Local said that the move would also bring devotees back to the Deva Mai temple. According to local belief, a darshan at Deva Mai is essential before proceeding to the Vaishno Devi shrine, yet the temple lies off the current route and is often skipped.
For the villages, the stakes go beyond traffic. More than 25 villages on this ancient track still lack basic amenities such as drinking water, electricity and road connectivity. Villagers hope that reopening the route will change their fortunes and bring economic activity to settlements on both sides of the road. They are also demanding that work begin on a war footing and be completed on schedule.
Seen this way, the revival of the Bamyal track is more than a traffic fix. It is being viewed as a step towards restoring cultural heritage, easing the pilgrimage and promoting inclusive regional development. |
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