Will ensure smooth pilgrimage for kanwariyas with minimal inconvenience to public: Ashish Sood

Will ensure smooth pilgrimage for kanwariyas with minimal inconvenience to public: Ashish Sood

Will ensure smooth pilgrimage for kanwariyas with minimal inconvenience to public: Ashish Sood PTI | Jun 19, 2025 10:22 PM IST Read this news in brief form Share Via Copy Link Will ensure smooth pilgrimage for kanwariyas with minimal inconvenience to public: Ashish Sood

New Delhi, Delhi Home Minister Ashish Sood on Thursday said the government will ensure that Kanwar pilgrims are able to observe their religious practices with full dignity and devotion, while ensuring minimal inconvenience to the general public.

Will ensure smooth pilgrimage for kanwariyas with minimal inconvenience to public: Ashish Sood

Sood chaired a high-level meeting at the Delhi Secretariat to review preparations for the upcoming Kanwar Yatra. The meeting was attended by senior officials from the Delhi Police, Urban Development Department, Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board, Delhi Fire Services, Delhi Home Guards, Municipal Corporation of Delhi, Power Distribution Companies, Disaster Management Authority, and other agencies concerned.

Sood said this is the first major religious event under the current government, with thousands of devotees expected to arrive from different states. He said the government will ensure all necessary facilities for the pilgrims during their passage through Delhi.

The minister announced that Kanwar organising committees will be provided with all necessary administrative support at a single point. A single-window system will be set up at the district magistrate's office to facilitate approvals and permissions from various departments in a streamlined manner.

He said the safety, service and convenience of the devotees will be a top priority. He directed officials from the municipal corporation, urban development department, power department and other agencies to identify rest points along the yatra route and ensure proper facilities such as cleanliness, toilets, drinking water and adequate lighting. The power department was asked to ensure uninterrupted electricity supply along the route and at camp sites.

Sood said the Delhi Police has been directed to deploy an adequate number of male and female personnel along the yatra routes and at camps to maintain law and order and manage traffic efficiently. Sensitive points along the route will be equipped with permanent barricading to ensure that pilgrims stay on designated paths and avoid unauthorised intrusions.

He also directed the police to monitor sound systems in camps near residential areas and ensure that devotional songs played on loudspeakers are limited to permitted hours. Police personnel have been asked to politely request pilgrims to avoid playing loud music late at night to avoid causing disturbance to locals, an official statement said.

They have also been asked to coordinate with police forces from neighbouring states.

Sood instructed the Delhi Fire Services to prepare a plan for deploying small fire tenders near Kanwar camps to respond quickly in case of fire-related emergencies.

Earlier this week, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta had announced that issues faced by the Kanwar committees will be solved through a single-window system. She had stressed that the government will take care of all the facilities for the "Shiv bhakts".

Kanwar Yatra is one of the most significant religious traditions of North India where millions of devotees collect holy Ganga water from Haridwar, Gangotri and other sacred places to offer at Shiva temples during the Hindi month of Saavan.

Every year, thousands of kanwar devotees pass through Delhi en route to other states.