After 7 days, chopper service resumes at Mata Vaishno Devi shrine

JAMMU: The helicopter service to the cave shrine of Shree Mata Vaishno Devi in J&K’s Reasi district resumed on Wednesday after a week-long closure due to the recent Indo-Pak hostilities in the aftermath of Operation Sindoor.

An official of Shree Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board said pilgrim footfall had begun picking up after a sharp decline since the beginning of May. Officials said the battery car service for devotees was also functional.

In view of the recent cross-border tensions, blackouts were observed along the track leading to the Vaishno Devi shrine since May 7. The chopper service resumed a day after flight operations restarted at 32 airports across the country, including Jammu and Srinagar airports.

Since Jan this year, more than 30 lakh pilgrims have visited the shrine as against 94.84 lakh last year, said shrine board CEO Anshul Garg. “Ease of registration is being ensured for pilgrims through 45 counters and self-dispensing kiosks for RFID cards,” he added.