UP govt bans display of arms during Kanwar Yatra

Lucknow: The Uttar Pradesh government has issued an advisory forbidding the display of weapons during Kanwar Yatras.

DJs and religious songs will be played within permissible limits during the month-long Kanwar Yatra which will commence from July 22 and conclude on August 19.

The DGP Prashant Kumar said that changes have been made in the traffic system in view of the Yatra. The entry of heavy vehicles will be banned on the routes from which the Yatra starts. Additionally, heavy vehicles will be banned from midnight of July 21 on the Delhi Expressway, Dehradun Expressway and Chaudhary Charan Singh Kanwar Marg.

He further said that kanwariyas are advised not to carry spears, tridents, or any kind of weapon. He said there would be no ban on playing DJs on the Kanwar Yatra route, but the sound must be within the permissible limit as per the Supreme Court directives.

He said liquor and meat shops along the Yatra routes would be closed as well and the local authorities have been asked to ensure that stray animals like pigs should not be found straying onto the routes of the Yatra.

Kanwar Yatra will be monitored through CCTVs and drones.

He said normal traffic on Ayodhya-Basti Road would be restricted as a huge number of devotees use it. Only ambulances and other emergency vehicles would be allowed on it, he stated.

Another official said that police officials were coordinating with registered organisations and devotees who set up roadside camps to offer food, water and lodging to Kanwariyas.