New Delhi: Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami visited Kedarnath shrine on Tuesday and took stock of all arrangements & preparations being undertaken for the Char Dham Yatra.

The Chief Minister visited the holy shrine to get a first-hand account of the Yatra preparations and directed officials to ensure a safe, hygienic & secure Yatra, equipped with all safety mechanisms. He also directed officials to make good use of technology & develop smooth & pedestrian-friendly pathway for pilgrims.

Speaking to mediapersons, CM Dhami informed that construction work of three consecutive phases of Kedarnath Yatra have been completed and work is going on for further phases. He also assured that the state administration has gone all out in ensuring smooth & comfortable Kedarnath yatra for pilgrims.

An appeal has also been made to all participants & stakeholders of Char Dham Yatra including hoteliers, cab & taxi drivers and hawkers to put in a collective effort to make this a grand success, as it comes after a hiatus of over 2 years, due to pandemic & slowdown.

Portals to open soon, pilgrims in large numbers likely

The portals of 4 shrines including Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri & Yamunotri are set to open in next few days and devotees are expected to throng the holy places in big numbers as pandemic hampered the pilgrimage for over 2 years.

In 2021, about 5 lakh pilgrims had joined the Yatra, despite Covid curbs in place. In pre-covid times, this number used to be double i.e. 10 lakh.

“This year, the hotels, cabs, taxis, etc. are being booked two months prior, hence we are expecting it to break all records this time,” CM Dhami said.

Char Dham Yatra to commence on May 3

The Char Dham yatra will commence on May 3, with the opening of portals of Yamunotri temple in Uttarkashi district. As per official note, the gates of Kedarnath & Badrinath Temple will be thrown open on May 6 & May 8 respectively. Prior to the opening of portals, Kedar Baba’s doli (palanquin) will be taken from Omkareshwar temple at Ukhimath to the holy shrine on May 2.

In good news for devotees coming to holy town from Delhi, the travel time is also set to curtailed significantly. Now, with construction of new highway, it will take 2 hours less to reach the pilgrimage centre.