Char Dham Yatra: Disaster Control Room To Be Set Up, BRO Team To Be Deployed To Check On Cracks

Dhami urged everyone to finish their preparations prior to the start of the yatra and ordered the Public Works department to make its roads completely free of potholes.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami. (File Photo)

A day after the review meeting with senior officers, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Tuesday stated that to guarantee that the pilgrimage to Badrinath goes without a hitch, a disaster management control room will be set up and a Border Roads Organization team will be sent to subsidence-stricken Joshimath, news agency PTI reported.

Joshimath, the entryway to well-known holy places like Badrinath and Hemkund Sahib as well as the popular ski resort of Auli, looks to be teetering on the brink of collapse with massive fissures emerging on structures, roads, and public amenities.

Speaking about the meeting, CM Dhami stated: "In the meeting, I reviewed the preparations for Char Dham Yatra & discussed the shortcomings we had last year. Uttarakhand is fully prepared for the yatra. This year’s yatra will be historic," ANI reported.

Dehradun| In the meeting, I reviewed the preparations for Char Dham Yatra & discussed the shortcomings we had last year. Uttarakhand is fully prepared for the yatra. This year’s yatra will be historic: Pushkar Singh Dhami, Uttarakhand CM pic.twitter.com/n6acJd8vto

— ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) February 21, 2023

The meeting was held on Monday to review the preparations for the Char Dham Yatra at Veer Chandra Singh Garhwali Bhawan of the state secretariat.

According to the chief minister, a Border Roads Organisation (BRO) team would be stationed in Joshimath to monitor the yatra on a daily basis and ensure that any problems—such as road cracks—are fixed right away, PTI reported.

On April 22, the Gangotri and Yamunotri temple gates will open, signalling the start of the Char Dham Yatra. On April 25, the Kedarnath portal will open, and on April 27, the Badrinath gateway.

Dhami urged everyone to finish their preparations prior to the start of the yatra and ordered the Public Works department to make its roads completely free of potholes.

Dhami said that there won't be a shortage of funding for the yatra's preparations and ordered the authorities to go on site inspections and keep an eye on things there.

He remarked that all departments had to address the issues and endeavour to give pilgrims better amenities.

On the yatra route, there should be enough parking spaces, and the trek path in particular has to be kept clean. According to the chief minister, each petrol station should provide restrooms and drinking water facilities in addition to signs and crash barriers.

He recommended sending teams of veterinarians out on the yatra routes to take care of the horses and mules used to pull the pilgrims' chariots to the temples.

Also, Dhami urged the pilgrims to spend 5% of their expenditures on purchasing local goods.

He suggested that the Char Dham Yatra serve as a forum for the advertising of regional millet-based goods.

(With Inputs From Agencies)