Doors of Kedarnath, Badrinath temples to remain closed today due to solar eclipse

After the eclipse, puja will be performed in the evening, the Chief Administrative Officer of the Shri Kedarnath-Badrinath Temple Committee said.

Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee president Ajendra Ajay told ANI that the doors of the temple will be opened after the eclipse period.

Earlier on Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered prayers at Badrinath temple with Uttarakhand Governor Lt Gen (Retd) Gurmeet Singh and Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami accompanied the Prime Minister at the shrine. Before arriving in Badrinath, PM Modi visited Kedarnath Dham in Rudraprayag and offered prayers in a traditional pahadi outfit, Chola Dora, that was gifted to him by Himachali women during his tour to the state. Kedarnath and Badrinath are among the most important Hindu shrines.

Meanwhile, due to the partial solar eclipse, temples are closed in Prayagraj on Tuesday. Devotees were seen taking a holy dip in the Triveni Sangam.

This time, countries worldwide will witness a partial solar eclipse on Tuesday, a day after the festival of Diwali. The eclipse will begin before sunset in the late afternoon and will be visible from most areas.

A solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between the sun and the earth, obstructing the sun's light from reaching the earth. As a result, the moon casts a shadow on the earth, resulting in a solar eclipse.

Even for a short time, viewing the eclipsed sun with the naked eye is not recommended. Even if the moon hides the majority of the sun, it will still cause lifelong eye damage and blindness.

During the maximum eclipse, the Moon will hide the Sun to a degree of around 40 to 50 per cent in the country's northwestern areas. The percentage coverage will be lower than the statistics indicated above in other parts of the country.

At the time of the maximum eclipse, the Moon will cover around 44 per cent of the Sun in Delhi and 24 per cent in Mumbai. From dawn to sunset, the eclipse will last 1 hour 13 minutes in Delhi and 1 hour 19 minutes in Mumbai. The eclipse will last 31 minutes and 12 minutes in Chennai and Kolkata, respectively. (ANI)