Finance
With this year’s Char Dham yatra seeing a surge of devotees, and roads leading to the four temples congested with vehicles, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has instructed officials to suspend any further offline registrations for the yatra till May 31.
He said the decision was required for security and convenience, and that pilgrims should be encouraged to visit other religious and mythical sites in Uttarakhand.
It was also agreed that devotees who entered Uttarakhand without registering for the yatra would be directed to other sacred sites in the state if they wished to visit them.
The Chief Minister also directed officials to analyse any shortcomings in the Char Dham Yatra arrangements and management over the last 10 days, and to make the required changes. He instructed Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) Anand Bardhan to prepare a weekly report.
Meanwhile, the Uttarakhand Health Department, in collaboration with the Wadhwani Initiative for Sustainable Healthcare (WISH) Foundation, has announced the launch of “eSwasthya Dham”, an initiative aimed at enhancing healthcare and monitoring systems for pilgrims undertaking the Char Dham Yatra. Integrated with the existing Char Dham Registration Portal on the tourism site, this platform is aimed at allowing pilgrims convenient access to their medical records.
There will also be screening locations throughout the Char Dham path where individuals may get their health checked, and the results will be available on the “eSwasthya Dham” web app. According to Chief Secretary Radha Raturi, Char Dham pilgrims over the age of 50 must undergo a health test.
Char Dham Yatra has shattered records this year when Shri Kedarnath Dham’s doors opened on May 10. Within 11 days, the number of visitors established a new record of 3.19 lakh. On Monday, a record-breaking 37,480 enthusiasts paid a visit.
This year’s yatra has already seen over 1.38 lakh devotees visit Yamunori Dham, over 1.25 lakh visit Gangotri Dham, and 1.39 lakh visit Badrinath Dham.
Source:IE
