Uttarakhand HC lifts stay on Char Dham yatra; caps number of daily pilgrims

The state government then approached the Supreme Court with a Special leave petition (SLP) against the decision. But earlier this month, it withdrew the SLP and approached the HC again with the plea that the yatra be allowed as Covid cases had come down significantl

Updated on: Sep 17, 2021, 03:13:37 IST

By Neeraj Santoshi, Hindustan Times, Dehradun

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The Uttarakhand high court on Thursday lifted its June 28 stay on the Char Dham yatra and directed the state government to conduct the annual pilgrimage with strict adherence to Covid-19 guidelines. The yatra will be open to all.

Allowing the resumption of the yatra, a division bench of the court comprising chief justice RS Chauhan and justice Alok Kumar Verma limited the daily number of devotees to the temples, and said they would have to carry negative Covid test reports and vaccination certificates.

Putting a cap on the number of devotees visiting the Himalayan shrines, the high court said that only 800 pilgrims for Kedarnath, 1,000 for Badrinath, 600 for Gangotri and 400 for Yamunotri will be allowed per day. Pilgrims will also not be allowed to take a bath in any of the springs around the temples, it added.

According to advocate general SN Babulkar, Char Dham yatra will be open to all with Covid-19 curbs. On June 20, the state government had announced the opening of Char Dham yatra in two phases- from July 1, for locals from three districts and from July 11 for people across the state, as at that time, the state was still reporting significant Covid-19 cases daily

The bench was hearing the state government’s petition seeking resumption of the yatra which was stayed by the court on June 28. The state sought to begin the pilgrimage for locals of Chamoli, Rudraprayag and Uttarkashi districts where the temples are located from July 1.

Besides the state, several local businessmen and traders also moved the court with the same request.

Shiv Bhatt, counsel of one of the petitioners said the bench directed the state government to station helicopters and ambulances at all shrines.

“The court has directed the government to provide various facilities on the route to Char Dham from Haridwar. The court also said medical facilities such as beds with medical oxygen will be enhanced” Bhatt said.

After the high court’s June 28 decision, the state government approached the Supreme Court with a special leave petition (SLP) to vacate the former’s stay on the yatra. As the matter was pending in the apex court, the high court was not in a position to hear the state government’s plea seeking lifting of the ban. However, the state recently withdrew its SLP in the top court, paving the way for the high court to hear its petition.

Meanwhile, the high court is also hearing a bunch of public interest litigations filed by lawyers and activists Sachdanand Dabral, Dushyant Mainali, Anu Pant and Rajendra Arya related to various issues pertaining to the Covid-19 situation in the state.

Kedarnath, Badrinath, Yamunotri, and Gangotri are collectively called Char Dham and millions visit them annually. The pilgrimage begins from Yamunotri in the west. It then proceeds to Gangotri and finally to Kedarnath and Badrinath in the east.

Last year, the pilgrimage could not be held as per schedule on April 26 with the opening of portals of Yamunotri and Gangotri, the first two shrines that are opened after winter, because of the lockdown imposed to check the pandemic spread in March 2020.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Neeraj Santoshi
Neeraj Santoshi is the Chief of Bureau for Hindustan Times in Uttarakhand, where he leads the state reporting team while covering government, politics, environment, wildlife, Uttarakhand High Court, and issues shaping the Himalayan region. With more than two decades in journalism across conflict zones, he has covered politically sensitive regions and environmentally fragile landscapes, and focused on stories that combine public interest with in-depth storytelling. An alumnus of Pune University with a Master’s in Communication Studies, he has reported extensively from Jammu & Kashmir (2003-2010), Madhya Pradesh (2010 to 2018 ) and Uttarakhand (Since 2018), covering subjects ranging from insurgency, elections and governance to wildlife conservation, mining, climate change, agriculture, human rights and social justice. He has covered politics and legislative assemblies of both Jammu & Kashmir and Madhya Pradesh over more than a decade. Before taking over as Chief of Bureau in Uttarakhand, he served as Special Correspondent with Hindustan Times in Madhya Pradesh and earlier reported for both Hindustan Times and The Indian Express in Jammu & Kashmir, where he covered state politics, environment and insurgency-related developments. Over the years, his stories have focused on environmental degradation, wildlife, illegal mining, governance and the changing social fabric of Himalayan states and Central India. He is particularly interested in long-form explanatory journalism, and stories that explore the intersection of ecology, conservation, governance and society. Outside the newsroom, Neeraj enjoys reading widely on neuroscience, consciousness studies, Artificial Intelligence and quantum physics, with a special interest in Kashmiri Tantric Shaivist traditions. He is also passionate about wildlife, mountaineering and the Himalayas, interests that continue to inform his reporting and deepen his understanding of the region he covers.Read More

Char Dham Yatra

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