Dr. Jitendra Singh offers prayers at Vasuki Nag Temple in Udhampur
Synopsis
Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh visited the celebrated Vasuki Nag Temple in Basantgarh, Udhampur on 18 October 2026, offering prayers for public welfare alongside BJP colleagues and local legislators.
Key Takeaways
Jitendra Singh , Union Minister and Udhampur MP, visited the Vasuki Nag Temple in Basantgarh on 18 October 2026 .
The minister offered prayers seeking the welfare of all ( sabke kalyan ki kamna ).
BJP legislators including Sunil Bhardwaj, Arjun Gupta, Kewal Parihar, and Pooja Thakur were present at the temple.
Youth leader Shahpan Singh and senior leader Beant Gupta also accompanied the minister.
The Vasuki Nag Temple at Basantgarh is a prominent religious landmark in Udhampur district , Jammu and Kashmir.
A union minister returning to his constituency — and to one of its most revered shrines. Union Science and Technology Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh, who also represents Udhampur as a Lok Sabha MP, on Sunday, 18 October 2026, offered prayers at the famed Vasuki Nag Temple in Basantgarh, seeking blessings for the welfare of all.
Posting about the visit on X, the minister wrote in Hindi: 'Udhampur jile mein aaj Basantgarh ke prasiddh Vasuki Nag Mandir mein puja-archana evam darshan kar sabke kalyan ki kamna ki' — 'Today, in Udhampur district, I offered worship and prayers at the celebrated Vasuki Nag Temple in Basantgarh, and wished for the well-being of all.' The post was accompanied by three images from the visit.
BJP colleagues, local legislators in attendance
The visit was not a solitary act of devotion. BJP colleagues joined Dr. Singh at the temple, including legislators Sunil Bhardwaj, Arjun Gupta, Kewal Parihar, and Pooja Thakur, along with youth leader Shahpan Singh, senior leader Beant Gupta, and Hansraj ji, besides local residents from the area. The gathering underscored the temple's role as a focal point for both community and political outreach in the region.
Vasuki Nag Temple: a landmark shrine of Basantgarh
The Vasuki Nag Temple at Basantgarh is one of the prominent religious landmarks of Udhampur district, dedicated to the serpent deity Vasuki — a figure of deep reverence in Hindu tradition. Nestled in the hills of the Jammu division of Jammu and Kashmir, the shrine draws devotees from across the region. For a constituency MP like Dr. Singh, a temple visit here carries weight both as personal observance and as a visible gesture of connection with the cultural fabric of Udhampur.
For senior ministers from Jammu and Kashmir, constituency visits that blend religious observance with local political presence are a long-standing pattern of public outreach — one that keeps ties alive between Delhi's corridors and the hills back home.
Point of View
Temple visits back home serve a dual function: personal faith observance and a visible affirmation of grassroots presence. Dr. Singh's stop at Basantgarh's Vasuki Nag Temple, with a cross-section of local BJP legislators in tow, is consistent with the party's strategy of weaving cultural identity into constituency outreach in Jammu and Kashmir. As J&K continues its political evolution post-reorganisation, such visible acts of local engagement by union-level leaders carry added symbolic weight. Whether this translates into deeper policy attention to religious tourism infrastructure in Udhampur remains the more consequential question.
NationPress
18 Oct 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is the Vasuki Nag Temple located?
The Vasuki Nag Temple is located in Basantgarh, within Udhampur district of Jammu and Kashmir. It is a prominent shrine dedicated to the serpent deity Vasuki.
Why did Dr. Jitendra Singh visit Basantgarh?
Dr. Jitendra Singh visited the Vasuki Nag Temple in Basantgarh on 18 October 2026 to offer prayers and seek blessings for the welfare of all. The visit also coincided with a gathering of local BJP leaders and legislators.
Who accompanied Dr. Jitendra Singh at Vasuki Nag Temple?
BJP legislators Sunil Bhardwaj, Arjun Gupta, Kewal Parihar, and Pooja Thakur joined the minister, along with youth leader Shahpan Singh, senior leader Beant Gupta, Hansraj ji, and local residents.
What is Dr. Jitendra Singh's political constituency?
Dr. Jitendra Singh is the Lok Sabha MP from Udhampur, Jammu and Kashmir, in addition to serving as Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences.
What is the significance of the Vasuki Nag deity?
Vasuki is a serpent deity of considerable reverence in Hindu tradition, often associated with protection and auspiciousness. The Basantgarh temple is one of the well-known shrines dedicated to this deity in the Jammu region.
