Garh jungle in W Burdwan to be developed into religious tourism circuit
The West Bengal government will develop a heritage religious tourism circuit at Garh Jungle in the West Burdwan district, modelled after the Kashi Vishwanath Temple circuit.
The West Bengal government will develop a heritage religious tourism circuit at Garh Jungle in the West Burdwan district, modelled after the Kashi Vishwanath Temple circuit.
Amid rain and cold weather, the annual Amarnath Yatra commenced early morning on Friday, with the first batches of pilgrims leaving the twin base camps of Baltal and Nunwan for the 3,880-metre-high cave shrine in the south Kashmir Himalayas, officials said. The mountainous cave shrine houses a naturally formed ice lingam.
Two pilgrims participating in the Chardham Yatra died on Sunday, the opening day of the 2026 pilgrimage season, reportedly due to suspected asphyxia.
A two - wheeler and a car were also damaged in the collision, a police spokesman said.
Gangasagar Island continued to witness an overwhelming influx of pilgrims on Thursday, the second day of the holy bath following the main Makar Sankranti Shahi Snan, as the auspicious period extended this year.
The direction follows the massive landslide triggered by incessant rains in which 35 devotees lost their lives at Adhkuwari, Katra, on 26 August 2025, allegedly due to criminal negligence of the officials.
The authorities have identified 20 of those dead. The victims were from across the country, officials said.
Flash floods hit the Kashmiri village of Chosoti on August 14, where pilgrims were on their way to the shrine of Machail Mata.
The Kailash pilgrimage is in the Bhaderwah sub-division of Doda with a 21-km difficult trek.
Almost identical statements, a decade apart, by Chief Ministers of two different political parties, reveal the crux of the problem – a flawed development model, imagined and implemented for Uttarakhand. Successive Governments have tried to stimulate economic activity through tourism and massive infrastructure projects. Such misplaced zeal for development has made the Government brush aside environmental concerns.
