By IANS,
Chandigarh : The holy Hindu city of Kurukshetra in Haryana is all decked up for more than one million pilgrims expected to arrive for a holy dip on the occasion of solar eclipse Friday.
“The district administration is fully prepared to welcome the influx of pilgrims. It has made all the necessary arrangements to facilitate the smooth conduct of the solar eclipse festival,” said an official spokesman of the Haryana government.
The state government has decided to provide insurance cover of Rs.100,000 for each pilgrim visiting Kurukshetra from July 30 till 8 a.m. Aug 2.
For transportation of the pilgrims 10 special trains will be run, said the spokesman.
The administration has made special arrangements for transporting physically challenged pilgrims. Seven bus-stops, including three permanent and four temporary ones, have been established for the smooth drive of the pilgrims, he added.
All the government offices, schools and colleges in Kurukshetra district would remain closed Friday.
The eclipse will be first seen in the world at 1:34 p.m. when the shadow of the moon first touches the earth near a point in the north Atlantic Ocean close to New Foundland in Canada.
The total eclipse of 150 seconds will be seen in various nations, including Canada, Russia and China, but all of India will witness only a partial eclipse as the country lies in the partial belt of the moon’s shadow.