Jammu, October 4: The cave shrine of Mata Vaishnodevi in Jammu and Kashmir's Reasi district has been declared the "cleanest religious place" in the country, officials said Thursday. Over 81.78 pilgrims visited the shrine in Trikuta hills in the district in 2017, a spokesperson of Shri Mata Vaishnodevi Shrine Board (SMVSB) said.

Mata Vaishno Devi shrine has won the prestigious 'cleanest religious place' award at Safaigiri Summit and Awards 2018 ceremony organised by the India Today Group in Mumbai on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti, he said.

The award has been given in recognition of the significant strides made by the shrine board for ensuring sanitation and cleanliness all along the tracks and in the entire shrine area, he said.

Union minister Nitin Gadkari presented the award to Chief Executive Officer of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board Dheeraj Gupta. According to the spokesperson, the board has deployed a sanitation workforce of over 1,000 people in addition to mobilising specialized machinery for upgrading sanitation services.

The board has introduced water less urinals based on 'flush-me-not' technology to curtail water consumption significantly and reverse vending machines to promote scientific disposal and recycling of PET bottles.

This is the second successive year when the board has been awarded in the field of sanitation as in 2017 it had received the 'Special Swachh Iconic Place' award under the 'Swachhta Hi Seva' campaign of the Government of India, on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti.