Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh) [India], July 1 (ANI): Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Tuesday said that district collectors and other officials have been directed to ensure proper arrangements for the safe and smooth conduct of the Kanwar Yatra along the routes in the state.

'The month of Sawan is about to start. Today, I have told my cabinet ministers, all collectors, and officials to do whatever is possible to make the routes of the Kanwar yatra and government places safe,' CM Mohan Yadav told reporters.

In the Kanwar Yatra procession, Kanwariyas collect water from a river and carry it hundreds of kilometres to offer it to the shrines of Lord Shiva. Devotees across the country perform worship, fasting and pilgrimage dedicated to the Lord Shiva.

Earlier last week, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath chaired a review meeting in Ghaziabad to take stock of development works and the prevailing law and order situation in the district.

According to the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister's Office (CMO), Chief Minister Adityanath met officials and public representatives during the meeting and issued several directives.In light of the ongoing Kanwar Yatra, the Chief Minister instructed officials to ensure that kanwariyas do not face any inconvenience during their journey.

Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party's Jangpura MLA Tarvinder Singh Marwah on June 27 wrote a letter to Delhi's Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena and Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, requesting the temporary closure of meat and fish shops along Kanwar Yatra routes during the upcoming holy month of Sawan.

In his letter, Marwah highlighted that the Kanwar Yatra is a matter of deep religious faith, during which devotees of Lord Shiva collect sacred water from Haridwar and other holy sites to perform Jalabhishek of Shivlings in their hometowns.

He urged the government to maintain the spiritual sanctity of the yatra by temporarily closing meat and fish shops near the Kanwar routes. (ANI)