Religious places to be beautified in Kashmir: Dir Tourism

Gulmarg, Jun 01, 2021: The authorities in Kashmir Tuesday said that all the religious places across the valley requiring renovation will be beautified and a proper plan has been furnished for the same by the tourism department.

In a sheer gesture of bonhomie, army at Gulmarg in north Kashmir with the help of locals repaired the structure of the Shiv temple.

On the occasion Director Tourism Kashmir Dr GN Itoo while talking to reporters on the sidelines of the event as per news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) said that renovation of Shiv Mandir was undertaken by the army at famous tourist spot Gulmarg.

Itoo said that the tourism department is also working on religious places including pilgrim tourism.

“Be it a Masjid, Mandir, Gurdwara’s, or Girjaghar, the renovation work is ongoing. Beautification is the mandate of the tourism department and the department has furnished the plan for the times to come,” he said.

Itoo said that in time to come all the religious places including shrines requiring any sort of beautification will be done by the tourism department.

Speaking to the reporters, army officer B A Fogat said the Mandir is historic and in terms of tourism the places gets great attention.

Fogat said the renovation work has been completed with the support of everyone including the locals, civil administration, police, and others.

“Most of the contribution in this renovation was from the locals of this area which depicts the perfect example of Kashmiriyat,” the officer said.

Ghulam Mohammad Sheikh, caretaker of Shiv Mandir for the past 30 years, said that the Temple is a testimony to the pluralistic culture of Kashmir and its proud heritage.

He further exhorted the Gulmarg community to continue doing service without any religious prejudice, and in the true essence of Kashmiriyat.

Meanwhile, a spokesman in a statement said the army Battalion at Gulmarg with the help of locals repaired the structure of the Shiv temple Gulmarg adding that the landscape and pathways leading to the temple were also redesigned and rebuilt.

He said that the Shiv temple was constructed in 1915 by Maharani Mohini Sisodia wife of erstwhile Maharaja Hari Singh of J&K and the temple required extensive renovation since no restoration work had taken place since long.

He informed that the renovated Shiv Temple was resurrected and reopened to the public on 01 June 2021.

An army official said that the Shiv Mandir was renovated by Pirpanjal Brigade and on Tuesday it was set to open for all in presence of top officials from both Army and civil administration besides others—(KNO)