KATHMANDU – Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Prem Bahadur Ale has said the development of the Shiva Circuit is inevitable for the promotion of religious tourism between Nepal and India.
Handing the national flag to the participants of the six-day Pashupatinath-Kashi Vishwanath motorcycle rally today, he stressed on the development of the Shiva Circuit for fostering religious tourism between the two countries. The motorcycle rally is organised by the Embassy of India, Kathmandu on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of India’s independence.
The Minister for Culture and Tourism emphasized on promoting the ancient religious sites with unique civilization in Nepal and India as well as developing the Shiva Paripath (Circuit) incorporating Pashupatinath, Kashi Vishwanath, Badrinath and Kedarnath.
Stating that the Nepal-India friendship based on equality is further deepened by similar religion, culture, tradition and customs, he described the four major pilgrimage sites dedicated to lord Shiva, the centre of faith of the Hindus, as open museum.
Ambassador of India to Nepal, Vinay Mohan Kwatra said the Kashi Vishwanath and Pashupatinath are the symbols of the continued cordial relations between India and Nepal, and they have connected the peoples of the two countries in a thread of love and goodwill.
Member-secretary of the Pashupati Area Development Trust, Milan Kumar Thapa and the Mul Bhatta (Chief Priest) of the Pashupatinath Temple, Ganesh Rawal, extended best wishes of good health and safe journey to the participants of the rally. The rally of 50 motorcycles will reach Kashi or Varanasi on November 16.
The participants of the rally would visit KashiVishwanath Temple in Varanasi on 13 November and perform puja and offer ‘SwachchataShramdan’ at Dashashvamedhaghat to spread the message of cleanliness.
During its journey, the rally would also cross several historically important places: Motihari – where Mahatma Gandhi launched ‘Champaran Satyagraha’ during India’s freedom struggle, Sarnath – the city where Mahatma Buddha delivered his first sermon, and Gorakhnath Math – a temple highly revered and visited by people from both India and Nepal. The snippets from the journey can be followed on Embassy’s social media handles.
The rally is organized by Embassy of India, Kathmandu in collaboration with Royal Enfield Kathmandu as part of ‘AzadikaAmritMahotsav’, an initiative of the Government of India to celebrate and commemorate 75 years of independent India and the history of remarkable progress of its people.
