Direct Bus Service Launched Between Nepal, India To Boost Muktinath Pilgrimage

Kathmandu: A direct bus service connecting Nepal's Beni Municipality with India's capital New Delhi was launched on Wednesday to facilitate pilgrims travelling to the famous Hindu and Buddhist shrine of Muktinath in the Himalayan nation, officials said. Beni is the gateway of Muktinath, an ancient Vishnu temple located in the Mustang district of Gandaki province.

The temple of Muktinath, known as 'the lord of liberation', is sacred to both Hindus and Buddhists, who worship it as the abode of the Hindu deity Vishnu and the Buddhist deity Avalokitesvara, respectively. The Nepal-India Friendship Bus Service, jointly introduced by Modern Era Tours and Travels and Sristi Yatayat Pvt Ltd, was inaugurated by Beni Municipality Mayor Surat Kesi, according to Deputy Mayor Jyoti Lamichhane.

The private bus service starts from Beni Kalipul Bus Park and passes through Syangja, Waling, Bhairahawa, Ayodhya, and Agra before reaching New Delhi, Lamichhane said.

The government-owned Delhi Transport Corporation has already been running the Nepal-India Friendship Bus Service between New Delhi and Kathmandu and vice versa since 2014. Several private operators, including Sristi Yatayat Pvt Ltd, also run services on the same route and between New Delhi and Pokhara.

However, officials said the new initiative is the first direct bus service linking New Delhi with Beni, enabling pilgrims to reach Muktinath more quickly. The initiative aims to link religious sites in Myagdi and Mustang with India and promote tourism from India to Nepal, Modern Era Tours and Travels Chairperson Keshab Prasad Adhikari said.

Till now, Indian pilgrims travelling to Muktinath had to undertake time-consuming and expensive multi-leg journeys, either by flying to Kathmandu followed by flights to Pokhara and Jomsom and then a jeep ride to the temple, or by road from border towns such as Sonauli and Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh.

The most common route involved a flight to Pokhara, a 20-minute flight to Jomsom and a further 90-minute jeep journey. Officials said the newly launched direct bus service would significantly reduce travel time and cost while providing a more convenient option for pilgrims and tourists.

It will take around 27 hours to reach Beni from New Delhi, Adhikari said. A bus will depart daily from Beni at 6:45 am and from Sarojini Nagar in New Delhi at 4:00 pm. The fare has been fixed at NPR 5,400 for the Beni-New Delhi route and INR 3,200 from New Delhi to Beni. The bus has a seating capacity of 45 passengers and covers a distance of about 1,400 km.

From Beni, travellers can reach the Muktinath Temple in neighbouring Mustang district by jeep, taxi or local bus within three to four hours, Lamichhane said. Located at an altitude of 3,710 metres near the Thorong La Pass within the Annapurna Conservation Area, Muktinath is regarded as one of the world's highest-altitude temples.

Officials said the bus service would benefit Indian pilgrims visiting Muktinath as well as Nepalese travelling to Delhi for higher studies, employment and medical treatment. Passengers are not required to carry passports for the journey but must have valid identification documents, they said. According to local transport entrepreneur Ain Bahadur Shahi, more than 100,000 Indian tourists are estimated to visit Muktinath annually.

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