Home Minister Amit Shah after virtually inaugurating the Sharda Devi Temple at Teetwal in Kupwara
Srinagar:
The government will try to open a corridor in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) for Sharda Peeth pilgrimage on the lines of the Kartarpur corridor in Punjab.
The move would require an engagement with Pakistan and the reopening of the Line of Control (LoC) at Teetwal in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kupwara, which was closed indefinitely in August 2019 after Jammu and Kashmir’s special status was revoked. I went.
Home Minister Amit Shah made this announcement today after virtually inaugurating the Sharda Devi Temple at Teetwal in Kupwara district.
The temple is built on the banks of the Kishanganga River along the LoC, which divided the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir.
Shah said, ‘Ravinder Pandita has said that Sharda Peeth should be opened for pilgrims on the lines of Kartarpur Corridor. The Government of India will certainly make efforts in this direction. There is no doubt about it.
Cross LoC trade and Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus services have been suspended indefinitely since 2019.
The opening of a pilgrimage corridor in PoK will be the first major step in restoring connectivity between the two sides after Jammu and Kashmir became a union territory in August 2019.
The ancient Sharda temple and center of learning, or Sharda Peeth, is located in the Neelum Valley across the Line of Control in PoK.
Shri Shah said that the inauguration of the temple is the beginning of an era and a step towards the discovery of Sharda civilization and Sharda script.
Shah said, “The reconstruction of Maa Sharda’s temple in Kupwara is an essential and important step towards the discovery of Sharda civilization and promotion of Sharda script.”