Kedarnath Complex is Free from Snow and now all Set to Open the Kapat on 9th of May

Rudraprayag: Arrangements in Kedarnath are running on a full swing and the 30 laborers who had been appointed for the work has shown their best efforts and have removed the snow not only from the temple complex but also from the pedestrian of the temple front. Now, devotees coming to visit the shrine and to pay homage to Lord Shiva will not face any difficulty because of snow. Also, the Kapat will be opened on the 9th of May at 5:35 pm.

The temple committee of 43 members was busy in preparing the travel preparations since the 19th of April only. Drinking water supply has been restored along with the electricity water supply inside the temple premises. By Saturday snow was removed from approx. 1400 sq. meters from the temple front and it took almost 15 days to accomplish this task. However, most of the region in Kedarnath is still covered with snow sheet of height up to 4 meters. Besides this, N P Jamloki, the chief executive of the temple committee has promised to restore all the required arrangements before the Yatra commences. He also stated that the war-level task has been going throughout the day.

Biometric Registration will start from the 8th of May, 2019

The biometric registration for Kedarnath Yatra will start duly from 8th of May. The allotted registrations centers are being established in Phata and Sonprayag. Besides these two centers, devotees can register themselves at Sonprayag also. P K Gautam, the chief executive of the tourism department of the Sonprayag district announced that the team has reached the destination on Saturday night to start the registration procedure.

Devotees Can Avail the Facility of Free Wi-Fi in Gangotri and Kedarnath

Unlike past years, this year pilgrims covering the divine Char Dham Yatra don’t need to think of network connectivity and to stay connected with their family and friends as the management has taken this issue on a serious note and made a lot of efforts to improve this situation. This year the management has started the provision of free Wi-Fi to its tourists. This is done to keep the devotees safe and secure and also to be in touch with the family. With the accordance of SWAN, this facility will be in the process very soon. Tourism secretary Dilip Jawalkar stated that this facility is made with a motive to keep the devotees safe and to solve the network connectivity issue.

The very first group of Char Dham Yatra 2019 has reached Rishikesh

On the auspicious occasion of Akshaya Tritiya, the doors of Yamunotri and Gangotri will be opened for the devotees on the 7th of May 2019. The first group to cover the divine Char Dham Yatra has reached Rishikesh from Andhra Pradesh, Hyderabad. The bus of these devotees will ply from the Rishikesh bus stand on Sunday morning.

You will be experiencing the impacts of Swachh Bharat Mission in Kedarnath

Seated at an elevation of 3553 meters above the sea level, Kedarnath Dham is dedicated to Lord Shiva and this year the Dham is going to showcase the impact of Swachh Bharat Mission.  The authority is ready with all such preparations. For example, there is a major step taken the authority of banning the plastic bags and this is why you cannot escape yourself from the rainy weather with the help of a raincoat. However, you can borrow a raincoat on rent which will be available everywhere on the Yatra. On the other hand, the management has not banned the chips and the other edible items packed in the plastic wrappers.

The management is especially focusing on the arrangements of the Kedarnath Dham which is located in the most sensitive location and has been damaged due to natural disasters. So, this time no such activities are allowed which play with the sentiments of the environment. To spread this awareness among the locals, nationals and international pilgrim authority will seek the help of NGOs. NGOs will be organizing an awareness campaign to keep the area free from environmental harm and clean. Similarly, there will be dustbins kept everywhere on the Yatra at a distance of 100 meters so that nobody would litter. Also, mobile toilets will also be arranged in a good number along with garbage disposal management. Although the authority was planning to put a ban on the edible items packed in polythene then after considering their necessity on covering the long distance to the shrines, they put a full stop on this thought. Now, the plastic bottles and the packets will be collected and brought to Gauri Kund from where they will be sent for the recycling process.

Apart from this, the management has completely banned the use of raincoats made up of plastics. According to the statistics, every year during the Yatra raincoats of approx. 4 Lacs are sold every year which is the main reason of spreading pollution in the region around the Kedarnath Dham. But, this year vendors are strictly advised not to sell the raincoats made up of plastics and even the other products except edibles and beverages. Whosoever is seen with the plastic products will be liable to pay the fine as it shows an offense against the rule.

Raincoats will be Available on Rent at the Charge of Rs.30

Mangesh Ghildiyal, the district magistrate of Uttarakhand announced that after putting a complete ban on the use of plastics, an Eco Development Society has been made to run the recycling process of plastic products at Gauri Kund. This society comprises of 9 people from the Gauri Kund region. This committee will be purchasing a total of 7,000 raincoats which will be provided to the pilgrims at a cost of Rs. 30 per raincoat. All these actions are not only going to help in keeping the regions clean but also in protecting the sentiments of the environment.