BHAGYASHREE

  Holy Places In India In India there are thousands of  tirthas vi sited by millions of people every year. Each is somehow special, often associated with a particular deity or saint, and offering its own particular boon or blessing. The most famous  tirtha  is Varanasi, also called Benares or Kashi. It is one of seven ancient holy towns. There are four great  dhamas  (holy places), which correspond to the four points of the compass and near which the great teacher Shankara established his four main centres. Another key city is Allahabad, established on the site of the ancient city of Prayaga but renamed as “The City of Allah.” It is the one of the four main sites for the twelve-yearly Kumbha Mela. The others are Haridwar, Ujjain and Nasik (as shown here). The map below shows all the major holy places mentioned and also the main sacred rivers and mountains. Further details of most of these sites can be found in this section. The Four Maha Kumbha Mela Si...

Pune and Mumbai account for nearly half the Covid infections in Maharashtra and, along with Thane, are among the top three districts where the spike in coronavirus cases is being actively observed. Pune has seen a more-than-tenfold jump in cases, as per the health department. Pune has seen a rise from 69 cases registered on March 1 to 752 on April 13, while Mumbai reported 47 cases on March 1 and saw a huge jump with 1,635 active infections being registered on April 13. In Thane, during the same period, the cases spiked from 26 to 1,040. The Omicron subvariant XBB.1.16, responsible for the surge according to health officials, is infectious but has so far not led to severe complications. Officials have advised wearing masks, especially for senior citizens, and avoiding public gatherings. Dr H K Sale, executive director at the Noble Hospital, said that most cases were being treated as outpatient cases. “So far at least in our hospital, we have not seen very many admissions,” Dr Sale said...