NEW DELHI: The government will resume its free pilgrimage scheme for senior citizens, the ‘Mukhyamantri Tirth Yatra Yojana’, on December 3 with a batch of 1,000 people who will leave for Ayodhya, officials said on Tuesday.
Last month, the Delhi Cabinet had approved the inclusion of Ayodhya in the scheme. The first train under the scheme carrying 1,000 elderly pilgrims will depart for Ayodhya on 3 December, said Chairman of Tirth Yatra Vikas Samiti Kamal Bansal.
“There is great demand from senior citizens for the pilgrimage scheme. We are getting large number of applications for pilgrimage to different places. Pilgrims for other places will be sent after preparations are complete,” he said.
Under the scheme, the government bears the expenditure of the entire pilgrimage to 13 circuits, including places such as Puri, Shirdi, Mathura, Haridwar and Tirupati.