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| Pilgrim dies of heart attack, hundreds stranded after snowfall in Badrinath, Kedarnath shrines | | | Agencies
At least one pilgrim died and hundreds, including former chief minister Harish Rawat and Rajya Sabha member Pradeep Tamta, were stranded on Tuesday after a fresh spell of snowfall in the Kedarnath and Badrinath shrines in Uttarakhand.
Rudraprayag’s district magistrate Mangesh Ghildiyal said while speaking to the Hindustan Times that the woman pilgrim died of a heart attack in the Kedarnath shrine and details about others were being collected.
“The pilgrims at Kedarnath are being helped by SDRF (State Disaster Response Fund) jawans, local police and the administration to come down to Gaurikund, the base station for Kedarnath,” Ghildiyal said.
He added the pilgrims have been stopped at several halting stations on the Kedarnath route till the weather is clear.
Snowfall of about five inches has been reported at Kedarnath, which has disrupted helicopter services and movement of pilgrims. The hills in Uttarakhand have been receiving rainfall as the meteorological centre warned of rains and storm in the state.
Rawat, MP from Almora Tamta, local MLA Manoj Rawat and former MLC Prithvi Pal Singh were among the dozen of Congress leaders who started a trek to the Kedarnath shrine from Gaurikund in Rudraprayag district on Sunday.
“The government has made enough propaganda about the Kedar Yatra and even introduced a laser show for it but ignored the convenience of an ordinary pilgrim who prefers going to Kedarnath on foot from Gaurikund,” Tamta said over the phone.
He claimed that the pedestrian route was filled with sludge and mire at many places and there was no arrangement for bonfires at Kedarnath for the pilgrims to counter the dipping mercury. The shrine dedicated to Lord Shiva reopened for pilgrims on April 29.
Chamoli district administration also stopped pilgrims from going towards the Badrinath temple after a snowfall.
The pilgrims have been advised to stay at Joshimath and other halting stations on the way after the last stretch of the Badrinath Yatra from Joshimath was hit by a landslide and rolling boulders at Lambagar.
The intermittent rains in the hills have already started testing the preparedness of the government as well as the patience of the locals, shopkeepers and hoteliers who are hoping for the yatras to go on in full swing at least before the monsoon season.
The state’s capital Dehradun also witnessed a storm around midnight and several trees were uprooted due to heavy winds in the cantonment area of the city. The administration has already closed schools as a precautionary measure.
Haridwar and Nainital also received rains with speedy winds on Tuesday morning. |
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