New Delhi: The ongoing heavy snowfall and rain in Kedarnath over the past few days have disrupted the preparations for the upcoming Char Dham Yatra.
The reopening of Kedarnath Dham for pilgrims on April 25 is affected, and various departments, under the guidance of District Magistrate Mayur Dixit, are working on making travel arrangements despite the challenging weather conditions.
Given the current situation, the Uttarakhand government has issued an advisory on Sunday for the pilgrimage, urging devotees to exercise caution and commence their yatra in accordance with the prevailing weather conditions.
As per government officials cited by news agency ANI, it is important to note that Kedarnath Dham is currently experiencing intermittent rain and snowfall.
The government has advised all devotees, both domestic and international, to check the weather forecast before embarking on their visit to Kedarnath Dham, and to ensure they carry sufficient warm clothing to cope with the weather conditions.
According to Uttarakhand DGP Ashok Kumar, as reported by ANI, there was heavy snowfall in Kedarnath Dham recently.
He has urged all pilgrims to remain vigilant and take weather conditions into consideration while embarking on their yatra (pilgrimage).
The registration for the sacred shrine in Kedarnath has been suspended by the government until April 30 in Rishikesh and Haridwar.
This decision was confirmed by Narendra Singh Kaviriyal, Additional Commissioner (Administration) of Garhwal Division and Additional Chief Executive Officer of Chardham Yatra Administration Organisation, who stated to news agency PTI that the suspension was due to the inclement weather and heavy snowfall in the region.
According to him, the government will assess the weather conditions and make decisions in the best interest of the pilgrims.
Kedarnath Yatra: Here Are The Key Details
- As of March, a total of 6.34 lakh devotees had registered for the Char Dham pilgrimage, Uttarakhand Tourism Development Council had said.
- The doors of Shri Kedarnath Dham will be opened for the devotees to visit from April 25, 2023.
- The government has asked authorities to complete the arrangements and preparations for the smooth and successful conduct of the Yatra before April 15, 2023.
- Concerned teams have been instructed to remove the snow from the Kedarnath Yatra route and complete the repair work of the damaged routes.
- “The work of removing snow on the Kedarnath Yatra route should be started at a rapid pace and the repair work of all the damaged routes should also be completed at the earliest, said Ajendra.
- 20 PRD (Prantiya Rakshak Dal) jawans had been deployed to monitor the safety of horses in mules on the yatra route.
- The Badrinath Dham is one of the four ancient pilgrimage sites referred to as ‘Char Dham’ which also included Yamunotri, Gangotri and Kedarnath.
- It is situated in the town of Badrinath in Uttarakhand. It remains open for six months every year (between the end of April and the beginning of November).
Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has instructed that both online and offline registration of pilgrims will proceed to monitor the number of pilgrims and ensure crowd management.
