"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 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.
The temple doors were opened at 8.50 am and the prime minister arrived just about half an hour later to offer prayers and perform a 'rudrabhishek'.
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.
Around 1,000 devotees will be allowed to visit Kedarnath shrine daily when its portals are opened on May 4, Chief Minister Harish Rawat said and sought to allay safety concerns of pilgrims.
Rescue teams will take another fortnight to evacuate flood victims as the roads leading to affected areas have been badly damaged, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna has said.
The 4.5 kilometre-long Silkyara tunnel project in Uttarakhand, which is part of the central government's strategic 900-km 'Char Dham Yatra All Weather Road', will continue after the necessary safety audit and repair of the broken structure, a senior road ministry official said on Wednesday.
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.
With the MeT department warning of heavy showers at various places in Uttarakhand on Friday and major rivers in spate, the Chardham yatra has been suspended even as the Centre decided to provide two Mi-17 helicopters to the state to deal with any emergency.
'How much rain fell on June 16 and 17 is NOT known because the area of Kedarnath is not covered by the Indian Meteorological Department,' M Shashidhar Reddy, vice chairman of the National Disaster Management Authority tells Sheela Bhatt. Because of this, the NDMA will not know "what exactly happened over there, in and around the Kedarnath temple."
The 25-member team returned to Rishikesh on Monday after traversing a distance of 1,158 km on foot braving the vagaries of the weather in highly difficult terrain in 50 days.
Microsoft's Indian-origin CEO Satya Nadella, in communication with employees, said the company will align its cost structure with revenue and customer demand.
Speaking on the occasion, Modi said the flag unfurled at the temple is not just symbol of our spirituality, but shows that our faith remains strong despite passage of centuries, and added that the centres of faith and spiritual glory of India are now being re-established.
The ultimate consequences of Rahul Gandhi's yatra may be known only in 2024, points out Dr Sudhir Bisht.
Since the prime minister's visit in May, not a single day has passed when the 'dhyan gufa' was not occupied by someone, an official said.
Kunal Kemmu's default mode performing comedy is overacting. When surrounded by much more competent theatre-trained actors, he falls consistently short. (In the past, this role would have been tailor-made for Govinda), observes Deepa Gahlot.
Refusing to buy the argument, the bench of Chief Justice R S Chauhan and Justice Alok Kumar Verma said if the Devasthanam Board decides not to permit live streaming of the rituals on this ground, it will have to quote a line from the scripture in support of the argument.
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.
'Where is the remote control in the BJP? When I become president, the remote control will stay with me'
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday conducted an aerial survey of rain-ravaged areas of Uttarakhand to asses the damage which the state government has pegged at Rs 7,000 crore.
'The cracks I saw yesterday were the largest I have seen in my life. We are scared.'
The sacred portals of Badrinath shrine in Garhwal Himalayas were reopened on Monday after a gap of six months amid chants of vedic hymns and elaborate rituals.
Authorities in Chamoli district said the toll may climb as about 50 persons from different villages in the area are missing and rescue operations are on.
"We don't accept the board's decision on opening the temple gates for a limited number of locals. We won't allow anyone to enter the shrine until the coronavirus infection goes away completely from Uttarakhand," Yamunotri temple committee general secretary Manmohan Uniyal said.
Greeting the jawans on the occasion, the prime minister said their devotion to duty in the remote icy heights, is enabling the strength of the nation, and securing the future and the dreams of 125 crore Indians,
'This is probably why the late General Bipin Rawat, who hails from the Garhwal Himalaya, said that the existing roads are fine with the army.'
The ministry of tourism is less concerned about the impact of the floods on life and property, but is more focused on promoting tourism, says Swathi Seshadri. Anupam Chakravartty reports
Work is also progressing on 17 strategic highway-cum-airstrips, three of which have been completed, he said. Besides, work is on in full swing on the Rs 12,000 crore ambitious Chardham project for providing all-weather connectivity to Gangotri, Kedarnath, Yamunotri and Badrinath.
In his monthly 'Mann ki baat' broadcast, he said the "Back to village" programme held in June in Jammu and Kashmir saw enthusiastic participation of villagers everywhere.
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Here's a recap of the events from the past 24 hours.
The Garhwal region collectively has deposits worth Rs 2,100 crore and advances worth Rs 1,000 crore.
About 1000 tourists and locals were stranded at various places, including 800 in Sangla alone and heavy rains were hampering the rescue operations, officials said on Monday.
As Geetanjali Krishna treks up to the Spartan temple of Triyuginarayan in Rudraprayag, she can't help but wonder about the excesses of Indian weddings.
So far, 15 bodies have been recovered from the debris, while 12 persons are still missing.
Rediff.com brings you monsoon images from across the country
With questions being raised whether large-scale deaths in Uttarkhand could have been averted, the MeT department today said it had issued "timely" warnings of heavy rains and landslides while the state government claimed there was not enough prior indication of a "crisis of this magnitude".
Journeys from the mountains to the temples.
It is increasingly clear that for the BJP to try and establish itself as an electoral force in Tamil Nadu, the party has to come out of the old Brahminical mould, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Tour operators in Odisha are set to suffer losses as tourists and pilgrims have started cancelling their bookings to various destinations in north India following the devastating floods in Uttarakhand.
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