Divisional Commissioner Jammu Ramesh Kumar, who is also Chairman Shri Shiv Khori Shrine Board, today chaired a meeting here to review the preparations for the three-day Maha Shivratri Shivkhori Mela, set to commence from February 25, 2025.
At the outset, Deputy Commissioner Nidhi Malik gave a comprehensive overview of the arrangements, covering provision of civic amenities including water and power supply, medical facilities, sanitation, besides measures taken for foolproof security, maintenance of law and order, traffic management and quality control of food stuff etc.
The Divisional Commissioner reviewed measures taken for barricading, public announcement system, provision of yatra registration counters, establishment of control rooms, and installation of hoardings to avoid inconvenience to pilgrims. “All stakeholder departments are needed to put in extra efforts to provide a memorable pilgrimage experience to the visiting devotees” he maintained.
Taking note of the growing number of pilgrims, the Divisional Commissioner proposed developing a mobile application for speedy pilgrim registration and management. Officials were directed to make use of digital solutions for smooth registration processes and better crowd management.
Calling for provision of quality food at the langar, he asked stakeholders to focus on cleanliness and hygienic surroundings.
The Chief Medical Officer was asked to permanently station a doctor at Bhawan, besides deploy an Ambulance and fully equipped medical team for the duration of the festival. To enhance pilgrim safety, officials posted at the Shivkhori Shrine will be imparted specialized training in fire safety measures, he said.
To facilitate smooth movement of devotees, the Divisional commissioner directed the ARTO to keep available adequate transport facilities and deploy enforcement teams to keep check on overloading and overcharging. The XEN PWD was directed to maintain roads, plan an alternate route from Ram Mandir to the Shivkhori Shrine and work on the expansion of the bridge on the route.
Security and law enforcement agencies were also directed to maintain tight security and ensure smooth crowd management during the festival.
SSP Reasi Paramvir Singh, ADC Rakesh Kumar, EO SSKSB Pardeep Kumar, ACR Anshumali Sharma, CMO, ARTO and other officials were present.