The Maharashtra government has identified 139 religious sites, including 73 from across the country and 66 from within the state, to facilitate free pilgrimages for senior citizens above 60 years under the Mukhyamantri Teerth Darshan Yojana.

A Government Resolution (GR) detailing this scheme was issued on Sunday, following its approval by the state Cabinet last week. Chief Minister Eknath Shinde had announced the scheme in the legislative assembly.

Beneficiaries of this scheme will be selected by a lottery method from the applications received.

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Pilgrimage Destinations

The pilgrimage destinations include prominent religious sites such as Vaishno Devi temple, Amarnath Caves, Golden Temple in Amritsar, Char Dham Yatra, Ram Temple in Ayodhya, Somnath Temple in Dwarka, and Jagannath Puri in Odisha.

Additionally, religious places in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Karnataka, as well as significant Buddhist and Jain sites, are included.

Within Maharashtra, 15 religious locations in Mumbai are part of the scheme. These include Siddhivinayak temple, Chaityabhoomi (associated with B.R. Ambedkar), Vipassana pagoda, a synagogue, Mount Mary church in Bandra and St Andrews Church, besides the Jain Temple in Nashik, and Dikshabhoomi in Nagpur, where Ambedkar embraced Buddhism.

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Eligibility For Teerth Darshan Scheme

Eligible individuals with an annual income of up to Rs 2.5 lakh are entitled to Rs 30,000 to cover travel, accommodation, and food expenses.

Applicants above the age of 75 are allowed to take along a spouse or attendant. A 17-member committee, led by the social justice minister, has been established to monitor and review the scheme at the state level.

A seven-member panel, including the assistant commissioner of the social justice department as the member secretary, has been set up at the district level under the chairmanship of the guardian minister.

At the state level, the commissioner of the social welfare department will act as the nodal officer.

Authorised tourist companies will be appointed for organising the bus journey and similarly IRCTC or equivalent companies will be appointed for the railway journey of pilgrims, the government said.

Beneficiaries of this scheme will be selected by committees appointed at the district level and the quota will be decided as per the population of the district.

“The Char Dham Yatra for Hindus, Vaishno Devi Yatra and Amarnath Yatra are also important pilgrimages for people of other faiths.  Senior citizens dream of visiting these sites at least once in a lifetime.

“However, those senior citizens belonging to the marginalised sections and common families could not do so because of the economic restraints. Many of them could not achieve their spiritual aspirations as they could not arrange any co-traveller with them to assist. To realise this dream, the state government has initiated this scheme,” Shinde said.