Meat shops on Kanwar Yatra route to remain shut: Mishra

NEW DELHI: Delhi Culture and Tourism Minister Kapil Mishra on Wednesday said the meat shops on the Kanwar Yatra route, most of which are run illegally, will be shut down during the religious event beginning later this month.

The minister reviewed the preparations for the Kanwar Yatra route in the city along with several ruling BJP MLAs.

“Its a decision of the Delhi government and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) that the meat shops will remain closed. Nevertheless, most of them are illegal and they should not be there. No such shop will be opened and there is no exemption,” said Mishra during the inspection.

“It will be specially ensured that no such unwanted thing happens anywhere,” he told reporters. The Kanwar Yatra will be undertaken by the devotees during the auspicious month of ‘Shravan’ from July 11 to 25. The devotees during the Kanwar Yatra carry water from rivers and other sacred water bodies and offer it at prominent temples of Lord Shiva, covering long distances on foot.

Mishra accompanied by BJP MLAs Ajay Mahawar, Tilak Ram Gupta, Anil Sharma, Pradyumn Rajpoot and Sanjay Goel inspected the Kanwar Yatra route and camps from Apsara Border to Karol Bagh.

“Every year around 2.5 to 3 crore Kanwariyas pass through Delhi. Our government is providing them every facility like setting up camps for them, erecting grand entry gates at various points and showering flower petals on them,” he said.

The minister said the government has already declared providing financial assistance to Kanwar Samitis through direct benefit transfer and also provided camps with 1,200 units of free electricity.