Gujarat’s Minister of Tourism and Pilgrimage Purnesh Modi flagged off a three-day tour to Somnath and other religious places on Sunday morning. Over 4000 residents of Surat took off for the pilgrimage in 75 buses. The Minister flagged off the pilgrimage buses for his constituents. Much of this pilgrimage has been arranged under the Gujarat government’s Shravan Tirth Darshan Yojana. The Minister said this was the first time he had arranged such a trip for his constituents, The minister is from Surat West.
Minister Modi “The scheme is basically meant for senior citizens above 60 years old. Earlier, 89,000 people benefited from the scheme. The state government had made certain changes and put forward a newly amended scheme in 2022. The first batch left Surat on Sunday morning. Over 4,000 senior citizens are the first beneficiaries of the newly-amended scheme.”
Those availing benefits under the scheme are also given a daily food allowance of Rs 100. Somnath trust has also been roped in to ensure better facilities for the pilgrims, the minister informed.
The tourists will reach Somnath in the evening where they will make a night halt at the accommodation provided to them. Tomorrow, that is August 15, all the pilgrims will participate in the flag-hoisting ceremony on the Somnath temple campus. The pilgrims will also visit Khodaldham temple in Rajkot, Chamunda Mata temple in Chotila and Swaminarayan temple in Gondal on their way back to Surat.
In the earlier scheme, the duration of the trip was specified as 60 hours but it has now been increased to 72 hours. Earlier, 50 per cent bus fare was met by the government but it has now been raised to 75 per cent.
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