SAHIL BHAT
OCT 4: In a major boost to tourism, even as, to maintain spiritual serenity, LG Manoj Sinha, on Tuesday, inaugurated highly anticipated 10-day Jhiri Mela in Jammu with all and sundry swept with fervour and gaiety.
The annual fair organised jointly by Directorate of Tourism and District Administration commemorates and pays glorious tributes to 16th-century farmer saint Baba Jittoo, who sacrificed his life in protest against Zamindar exploitation.
Like every year, Jhiri Mela witnesses the footcount of over 10-12 lakh devotees from Jammu, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, and other parts of the country.
With apt arrangements from the Agriculture, Horticulture and Municipal Departments vis-a-vis sanitation, health services, parking, eatables and other essential requirements, the fair did not witness any stampede-like situation.
In the course of the Mela, the agriculture department generate cognizance among the farming community regarding new technologies and agricultural schemes being launched and implemented by the Government of India.
Besides, security has been heightened with thick blanket of deployment of J&K Police and Paramilitary Forces in the fair to avoid any untoward incident.
