Most of the western slopes of the Pir Panchal Mountain are made up of loose soil and rocks. Their slopes are not stable. Land slides are regular phenomenon during the rainy season. Apart from that big boulders and stones shoot occasionally so fiercely that these could be the source of fatalities by chance. The hilly path from Katra to the holy cave goes along the unstable rocks which are prone to sliding and falling without notice and most commonly during the rainy season. This makes the uphill track very dangerous. There is every possibility that any rock or any big boulder can slide down and strike at the pilgrims moving along the track to the holy shrine.
This has been one of the worries of managers of the holy shrine of Mata Vaishno Devi. At last, the Shrine Board, under the leadership of the Governor, who is also the Chairman of the Board, came to the conclusion that modern technique could be exploited to provide support to the rocks along the uphill track and at the same time a method of protecting the pilgrims against the fall of shooting stones could also be found out.
The Shrine Board has formulated Rs. 77 crore THDCIL project, which is being executed in phases, to protect, treat and stabilise 33 sites on the Trikuta Mountains, which have been identified as potentially the most vulnerable from the point of view of landslides and stones falling on the tracks. M/s THDCIL, an Undertaking of Government of India and UP, have provided consultancy for the project of rock protection which is executed by a consortium of M/s Geobrugg AG of Switzerland and M/s Pioneer Foundation Engineers of India. The Swiss Company is known for its expertise in modern technique of holding the sliding rocks and boulders of specific weight and not let them cause damage to life and property. Of course, Switzerland is known in the world for unique expertise in this field and Swiss engineers have given proof of the efficacy of their techniques.
The primary objective of the Shrine Board is that since the number of pilgrims to the holy cave is increasing with the passing of each day, there is large scale human activity across the entire track. This could become a source of through to the physical well being of the pilgrims who are entitled to the right of protection to life while on pilgrimage. This became catalyst to the Board taking a decision of floating 77 crore rupee project of supporting the vulnerable rocks along the track against sliding at any time. The Board has decided to build good number of pilgrims shed all along the track so that pilgrims can take shelter under their roof when rain comes.
The project will be completed in phases and the first phase has already begun. There are allied works also that will be taken in hand simultaneously with the sliding rock protection programme.
Mata Vaishno Devi shrine has assumed great popularity among a vast number of Indian citizens who are fierce devotees of the deity. Unprecedented number of pilgrims has forced the Shrine Board authorities to address even the smallest aspect associated with the pilgrimage. With rail connectivity to Katra, a major hindrance to access the holy shrine has been comparatively reduced. With the rocks and landslides protect along the hilly track, a big step has been taken for ensuring protection of the life and limbs of the pilgrims during their foot journey. The idea of fixing mesh wire along the slippery side of the track is a good addition to the entire security plan of the shrine. 18 kms of the entire track has been fenced and hopefully in a few weeks more the scheme will cover the entire area.
In final analysis, we highly appreciate the novel and innovative schemes of the Shrine Board, and more particularly of its Chairman. The spectacular improvement made in all aspects of the shrine make it outstanding among numerous shrines in the country. The Shrine Board works with efficiency, dedication and a deep sense of responsibility. Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board can be a model for other shrine boards in the State.
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