Snowfall and rain hit the Char Dham Yatra on Tuesday with thousands of pilgrims halted en route to Kedarnath and Yamunotri temples in the Garhwal Himalayas as a precautionary measure.
The gold plating of the sanctum sanctorum was done under the supervision of the experts of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), he said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered prayers at the famous Kedarnath temple in Uttarakhand's Rudraprayag district on Friday.
Citing the example of last year, he said many pilgrims who came for the yatra from rural areas of Uttar Pradesh had to return from Rishikesh and Haridwar as they had not registered in advance for it.
'We will tell people how BJP put an end to a 2500 year old tradition to constitute the board infringing upon our rights'
"After taking into account all suggestions, we have decided not to hold live streaming of Chardham Yatra as it is not written in the Vedas. We are also going to file an affidavit in the high court in this regard," the CM said.
The final voter turnout figures in the state were released by the EC on Wednesday after addition of data from the polling parties deployed in remote areas of the hill state.
Yet another effort has been made by the state government for a scientific study with the help of satellite imagery of the crisis in the sinking town, Bhatt, who is associated with the Chipko Movement, said.
Lifting the ban on the yatra, a division bench of the court comprising Chief Justice R S Chauhan and Justice Alok Kumar Verma said the pilgrimage will start with restrictions like a daily limit on the number of devotees visiting the temples.
Originating from Vasudhara Tal, perhaps the largest glacial lake in Uttarakhand, the Dhauli Ganga flows in a meandering course, which takes it through the Nanda Devi National Park.
"Polling was held peacefully at the 11,697 polling booths across the state with 65.1 per cent of the electorate casting their votes till the close of polls," Chief Electoral Officer Saujanya who does not use a surname said.
Resumption of 'Char Dham yatra' after a gap of two Covid-marred years is a welcome development for thousands of people whose livelihoods depend on it, but the death of 78 pilgrims on way to the Himalayan temples in less than a month is causing concern.
On the occasion of 72nd Republic Day, several marching contingents marched down Rajpath in Delhi on Tuesday, with President Ram Nath Kovind saluting them from the dais. Here's a look at some of the regiments.
Incessant rains lashed Uttarakhand for the second consecutive day on Monday, prompting the authorities to advise Chardham pilgrims not to proceed to the Himalayan temples till the weather improves.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed anguish at the loss of lives in Uttarakhand and noted that rescue operations are underway to help the affected.
Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi and state Congress president Navjot Singh Sidhu, who have not been on the same page over certain appointments, Tuesday said they will work with each other and fight the upcoming polls together, according to party MLAs.
The Uttarakhand high court on Monday stayed the Chardham Yatra reversing a cabinet decision to open it partially for residents of three districts from July 1.
Controversial Punjabi singer Sidhu Mussewala, who joined the Congress sometime ago will contest from Mansa and actor Sonu Sood's sister Malvika Sood from Moga.
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Rescue teams on Sunday recovered 13 more bodies, including the first ones to be pulled out from the sludge-choked Tapovan tunnel where a massive operation to reach about 30 people trapped inside began after a flash flood in Chamoli district a week ago.
The ultimate consequences of Rahul Gandhi's yatra may be known only in 2024, points out Dr Sudhir Bisht.
The water level of the Dhauli Ganga river at Joshimath flowed at a perilously high level, breaching all records, Central Water Commission officials said after a part of Nanda Devi glacier broke off in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district leading to massive floods.
There were no reports of loss of property or life.
Abhishek Bachchan along with his actress wife Aishwarya Rai and mother Jaya Bachchan visited the Kedarnath shrine and offered prayers to Lord Shiva in Rudraprayag district of Uttarakhand on Friday.
'This individual's constant endeavour at self-glorification, even at the cost of both the government and the party, has the potential to subvert whatever genuine efforts that Channi has been making since he became CM.'
However, the team despatched to Kedarnath has been able to build a temporary bridge over a canal between the helipad and the shrine.
An FIR has been lodged in this regard by the temple committee officials.
Superintendent of police V P Singh said the timely intervention of police saved several lives as it managed to extricate the injured and providing them timely medical aid.
Swollen waters of the Bhagirathi following incessant overnight rains washed away a famous Shiva temple in Uttarkashi on Friday even as the state government set September 11 as the date for resumption of regular prayers at Kedarnath temple,which were suspended after the June calamity.
Heavy overnight rains across Uttarakhand on Monday led to a rise in the levels of most water bodies, including the Bhagirathi River and the Tehri Lake.
The MeT department forecast very heavy rains over the next 48 hours in the mountainous areas of the state especially the disaster-prone Pithoragarh, Uttarkashi, Chamoli and Rudraprayag districts where torrential rains may trigger flash floods, cloudbursts and landslides asking people as well as authorities to be alert.
Devotees were not allowed to enter inside the temple premises when Modi was offering prayers.
'My belief that I could protect the Himalayas was shattered.'
The famous Manikarnika Temple on the banks of Bhagirathi was swept away by the swirling waters of the river in the wee hours on Friday even as fresh attempts were launched to trace Almora Sub-Divisional Magistrate Ajay Arora, who slipped off a makeshift bridge and fell into the Mandakini river.
A key road connection between Srinagar, the last major town on the banks of the Alaknanda, and Rudraprayag, the junction where the roads to Badrinath and Kedarnath diverge, was broken on Monday night, following heavy downpour and landslides.
The Indian Army has launched one of the biggest human rescue operations in Uttarakhand. On Thursday it mobilised troops for rescue and relief efforts, as it simultaneously reached out to over 8,000 people on all four different axes, viz, Rishikesh-Uttarkashi-Harsil-Gangotri axis; Rudraprayag -Kedarnath axis, Joshimath-Badrinath axis and Dharchhula -Tawaghat axis in Pithoragarh district, a statement said.
With his name or without, Jim Corbett continues to live on in his home in Uttarakahand's Kaladunghi and in the jungles he loved.
Search and rescue operations in Kedarnath and surrounding areas is over for all practical purposes, officials said in Son Prayag. No more survivors have been found and defence and paramilitary personnel are now wrapping up their mission.
The heavy rains that have lashed Uttarakhand over the past weekend, and the floods that followed, have blown the sails out of the hill state's fragile economy.
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