Chandigarh (Haryana) [India], March 10 : The Haryana government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation to facilitate free train travel for eligible senior citizens to various pilgrimage sites under the Mukhyamantri Teerth Yatra Yojana, officials said here on Tuesday.
On behalf of the Haryana Government, Director General of Information, Public Relations and Languages Department, K Makarand Pandurang, and on behalf of IRCTC, Circle Regional Manager (CRM) Harjot Singh Sandhu signed the MoU.
Director General K. Makarand Pandurang stated that the Haryana Government launched the Mukhyamantri Teerth Yatra Yojana to facilitate free visits for eligible elderly devotees of the state to various religious places. Under this scheme, thousands of eligible senior citizens from different districts have already been taken to pilgrimage sites, including Ayodhya, through the Volvo buses of the Haryana Transport Department.
Following the directions of Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, the government has now planned to arrange pilgrimage visits by train as well. In line with this initiative, the MoU has been signed between the Haryana Government and IRCTC. On this occasion, Harsh Deep and Nitin Sharma from the Railways and the Additional Director of the Information, Public Relations and Languages Department, Ranbir Singh Sangwan, along with other officials, were also present.
Pandurang informed that under the agreement with IRCTC, devotees from Haryana will be taken to several major pilgrimage destinations, including Ayodhya, Varanasi, Patna Sahib, Nanded Sahib, Pushkar Ji, Vaishno Devi, Shirdi, and Shani Shingnapur. Additional pilgrimage sites may also be included in the future as required.
He further informed that each train will consist of 11 coaches, out of which 10 coaches will be reserved for devotees and one coach will be for the serving staff. During the journey, arrangements for food and beverages, transportation from the nearest railway station to the pilgrimage sites, and accommodation will also be provided free of cost by the Haryana Government.
Under the Mukhyamantri Teerth Yatra Yojana, senior citizens aged 60 years and above from Haryana whose annual income is less than ₹1.80 lakh are eligible for free pilgrimage tours to sacred places. Eligible individuals can avail the benefit of the scheme by registering on the official pilgrimage portal.
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