Lockdown: Char Dham portals to re-open on scheduled dates

Garhwal Commissioner Ravinath Raman while speaking to ETV Bharat said that the Char Dham yatra will begin on the scheduled date but devotees will not be allowed to come for the time being as there have been no instructions from the central government.

Dehradun: The nationwide lockdown imposed to flatten the curve of Coronavirus infection has also affected the upcoming Char Dham Yatra in Uttarakhand.

Speaking to ETV Bharat, Garhwal Commissioner Ravinath Raman said that the Char Dham yatra will begin on the scheduled date but devotees will not be allowed to come for the time being as there have been no instructions from the central government.

However, the Commissioner said though the devotees would not be able to visit the four piligrimages, Uttarakhand government will enable them to see the temples and the rituals online on all social media platforms. Efforts are also being made to facilitate the chief minister join the ceremonies online.

Devotees would be able to watch online the morning and evening aartis and all the rituals and rites conducted in all the four pilgrimage centres. For the priests unable to travel on account of the lockdown, arrangements are being made to make his online presence.

The Char Dham Yatra, is scheduled to start on April 26, Akshay Tritiya, with the opening of the portals of Gangotri and Yamunotri.

However there is a big challenge before the state government in making arrangements for the opening of the portals on account of the lockdown.

Though the gates of the temples would be opened as per the predecided time, but it is difficult to say when will the devotees be able to have the darshan of the deities. The Gangotri and Yamunotri pilgrimages will be opened on April 26 and that of Kedarnath on April 29 and of Badri Vishal on April 30 in accordance with complete religious rituals.

The portals of Gangotri and Yamunotri are opened by the priests of Semwal and Uniyal communities who perform elaborate pooja and follow the procedure prescribed in the holy scripts.

The custom is different for Kedarnath and Badrinath. The gate of Kedarnath is opened by the Lingayat priests from Karnataka.

Since the central government has now extended the lockdown up to May 3, uncertainty prevails over the access of devotees to all the four pilgrimage centres.

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