CM Bhagwant Mann flags off buses under Punjab’s Mukh Mantri Tirath Yatra Scheme to help pilgrims visit holy sites, promoting unity and peace.

Bhagwant Mann, the chief minister of Punjab, announced the opening of the first group of buses  that would transport pilgrims to the holy city of Amritsar as part of the Mukh Mantri Tirath Yatra Scheme.

The Chief Minister spoke to the followers and said that the trip is in honor of the ninth Guru, Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji, who was martyred 350 years ago. He claimed that this program was started on October 29, 2025, in the village of Bararwal, and that a transparent draw was used to choose these devotees. According to Bhagwant Singh Mann, this modest effort aims to improve religious and social unity among Punjabis by making it easier for them to travel to sacred locations.

According to the Chief Minister, this program satisfies the long-held desire of senior citizens to attend holy places of worship. Jallianwala Bagh, the Partition Museum, Durgiana Temple, Bhagwan Valmiki Tirath Sthal, Sri Harmandir Sahib, and other historical and religious sites in Amritsar will be visited by the devotees as part of the program, he said. People of all castes, faiths, financial levels, and geographical locations are eligible for this program, according to Bhagwant Singh Mann.

Also read : Punjab Govt Hosts Kirtan Samagams Honouring Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji

The Chief Minister went into further detail, stating that the state government has made complex plans to provide the pilgrims with a complimentary stay of three days and two nights. He claimed that pilgrims who are 50 years of age or older had registered, and that registration now requires a voter ID card. The pilgrims would receive complimentary meals, AC hotel rooms, and buses, according to Bhagwant Singh Mann.

A medical team will also accompany the pilgrims to provide prompt assistance in the event of an emergency, according to the Chief Minister, and each bus will have an attendant to help the passengers. All devotees would receive prasad once the pilgrimage is over, he said. Bhagwant Singh Mann, meantime, asserted that Punjab is the hallowed territory of great saints, deities, martyrs, and gurus who taught us the value of fraternity, solidarity, and peace within the community.

According to the chief minister, he is fortunate that God has given him the responsibility of serving the public interest through this admirable cause. He claimed that this plan is consistent with the philosophy and teachings of the great Guru Sahibans, who spread the word about international peace, fraternity, and love. For various reasons, a significant portion of the state’s population was unable to go to these holy sites throughout the nation, according to Bhagwant Singh Mann.

But according to the Chief Minister, the state government has now launched this program to make it easier for pilgrims to go to the national and state’s many sacred sites. He urged all followers to take part in the numerous celebrations, religious processions, and major events being organized in several districts and at Sri Anandpur Sahib to honor the Ninth Guru, Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji, who was martyred on this day. The state administration, according to Bhagwant Singh Mann, has already planned a comprehensive schedule of festivities to mark this momentous anniversary.

In response to a question, the chief minister claimed that the state congress chief was making reckless and illogical remarks because he had lost his mental equilibrium. He claimed that such petty remarks are not made by a typical or reasonable person, and that the state Congress Chief, who is aware that his party would undoubtedly lose the Tarn Taran election, has been perplexed and is engaging in such behavior as a result. The retrieval of VVPAT and EVM slips from BJP politicians’ homes and trash dumps, respectively, raises major concerns about free and fair elections and the operations of the Election Commission of India, according to Bhagwant Singh Mann.

The Chief Minister said that democracy may be doomed if the Election Commission of India’s waning legitimacy continues. He stated that if any political party raises concerns about EVM and vote stealing, the Election Commission ought to make its stance clear. Bhagwant Singh Mann, however, stated that the BJP is serving as the Election Commission’s mouthpiece while the Commission remains silent, which is absurd.

The Chief Minister reaffirmed that the central government, led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), has been frantically attempting to gain unlawful access to Punjab University. According to him, Punjab University in Chandigarh has always been a part of the state’s rich traditions, literature, culture, and emotions. Although there are frequent attempts to alter the university’s status, Bhagwant Singh Mann lamented that the Punjab government will not permit any such action in the greater benefit of the students.

Because of their anti-Punjab sentiment, the Chief Minister claimed, the BJP is determined to destroy the state. The BJP, he claimed, forbids the state tableaus from taking part in the celebrations of Independence Day and Republic Day. Bhagwant Singh Mann added that the saffron party’s antagonistic stance toward the state is also shown in the excessive meddling in BBMB, Punjab University, and other matters.

The Chief Minister added that Congress leaders who had defected to the BJP in order to secure seats in the Government of India are only “ornamental Ministers” because they lack the authority to approve any projects. Jyotiraditya Scindia, Ravneet Bittu, and other leaders, he joked, are merely Union Ministers in name and have very little authority to grant any projects to the states. These ministers have lost their jobs as a result of the NDA government under Narendra Modi’s strong drive for the privatization of important industries, according to Bhagwant Singh Mann.

Also read : Bhagwant Mann Hands Over Appointment Letters to Young Punjab Job Seekers

In this time of serious difficulty, the Chief Minister blasted the Union government for treating the state like a stepmother. According to him, the state has not yet received the Rs 1600 crore that the prime minister had promised for flood relief, and the central government is attempting to exacerbate the issue by transferring funds from other existing programs to this as well. As the nation’s food bowl and sword arm, Bhagwant Singh Mann stated that the Union government ought to put an end to this mistreatment of the state.

According to the Chief Minister, the state government is giving out two lakh quintal seeds valued at Rs 74 crore to food growers in the state, who have suffered a crushing loss due to the recent floods. The process of providing free seeds to farmers in flood-affected districts has begun and will soon be finished, according to Bhagwant Singh Mann. He added that the state government had paid farmers compensation for crop loss in the amount of Rs 20,000 per acre, the most than any other state government in the nation had ever done.