In a welcome turn of events for devotees, the Kedarnath walking route has almost been fully restored, much to the relief of pilgrims who have been trekking their way up to the sacred shrine. The path was severely damaged in a disaster on July 31 that maimed its route, thus propelling a major rescue operation led by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and District Magistrate Saurabh Gaharwar.
The disaster had left the 19-kilometer route broken and dismantled at 29 different points, which started a coordinated evacuation of thousands of pilgrims and locals, some of whom were evacuated through choppers. Ever since 260 labourers have been on continuous labour to restore the track. Although the path has largely been repaired there are still minor issues at one or two spots, where security personnel are assisting pilgrims to have a safe passage from the area.
Devotees from Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, and Haryana reached Kedarnath Dham after 15 days of strenuous trekking. They expressed their gratitude to the district administration, which has made it possible for the pilgrimage to resume without any hassles. Around 150-200 pilgrims reach the shrine every day, and now the total number of pilgrims visiting the Kedarnath Shrine has crossed 10,93,632.
In addition to the restoration work of the pedestrian track, the district administration is also gearing up the repair work of the Sonprayag-Gaurikund highway, which is very important for vehicular movement. The repair work was expected to be taken up by hundreds of workers deployed for the task while machines and personnel from the NH department worked continuously night and day for the next three days to complete the repairs in this area.
Wishing the citizens of the State the folk festival ‘Ghee Sankranti’ or ‘Gheu Tyaar’, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami hoped the celebrations usher in glee and prosperity to all through a social media post.
ANI
