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Following the end of the monsoon season, the Shri Kedarnath Dham Yatra has gained momentum once again, with the number of devotees reaching 1.183 million as of Tuesday evening.
Whereas only four to five thousand pilgrims were visiting Baba Kedar for darshan in the days following the reduced rainfall, the past two days have seen over 11,000 devotees arriving daily for the pilgrimage. Last year, approximately 1.9 million people visited Baba Kedar, while the total number of pilgrims undertaking the Chardham Yatra reached nearly 5.6 million. This year, heavy rains in the Kedar Valley on July 31 caused obstructions to roads and footpaths at several locations, disrupting the Yatra for almost a month. Under the leadership of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, the state and district administrations swiftly restored the pilgrimage route within 15 days and fully resumed the journey within a month, all while prioritising the needs of local residents. Despite the heavy rainfall, District Magistrate Saurabh Gaharwar's efforts ensured the safe rescue of all pilgrims in record time, allowing the journey to resume smoothly. All relevant departments, including the Garhwal Commissioner and the Disaster Secretary, have been working diligently under the directions of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami to ensure the pilgrimage is safe and smooth for all devotees. Kedar Sabha President Rajkumar Tiwari expressed his gratitude to Chief Minister Dhami for reopening the pilgrimage route and business operations on time. Rajkumar Tiwari said, "Dhami ji's efforts to commence the second phase of the journey and provide free heli services for all, while considering the interests of traders, are highly commendable." "With this, not only was the journey resumed on time, but pilgrims were also provided with proper facilities. The increase in pilgrimage has also boosted business along the Kedarnath trekking route, with more people offering services such as hotels, dandi-kandi (palanquins), and horses and mules," he added. (ANI)
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