Winter Season Char Dham Yatra from March 2

The initiative is expected to boost tourism further in the state:

P.S. Chauhan

Though the summer season Char Dham Yatra will begin after a few months, the announcement of the auspicious dates for the reopening of the portals of the four dhams of the Hindus, situated in Garhwal region of Uttarakhand, has begun.

After remaining closed for six months during winter, the portals of the sacred shrine of Badrinath will be reopened for devotees on May 9. As per tradition, in the presence of the Tehri King, Manujendra Shah and Maharani Rajlakshmi, the Raj Purohit of the King dynasty announced the date for the reopening of the shrine.

The shrine, the most revered by the Hindus, was closed for the devotees on November 17 last year. Legends say that for six months the humans pray to the gods, while for the next six months gods pray at the shrine.

In a related development, the state government has decided that the Char Dham Yatra, which is the backbone of the economy of the state, should continue round the year instead of for six months only. The proposal to increase the duration of the yatra was mooted by the N.D. Tiwari government. But it did not find favour with the management of the shrines and some sections of society. For some time opinions have been building in favour of the continuation of the yatra for long. After consultations with concerned organizations the state government has decided to start the winter season Char Dham Yatra from March 2. Surat Ram Nautiyal, the vice chairman of the Char Dham Yatra Vikas Parishad, said that the auspicious date of the commencement of the winter season Char Dham Yatra for this year had been decided after holding consultations with Jagatguru Madhvashram, the Shankaracharya of Jyotirpeeth of Badrinath. "Necessary instructions have been issued to the concerned departments", informed Nautiyal. During winter the yatra will go up to Kharsali, Mukhba, Ukhimuth and Pandukeshwar which are the respective wintry abodes of the deities of Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath and Badrinath. Welcoming the new move about the yatra, Suresh Gulati, the president of the Haridwar city Vyapar Mandal, says that so far the yatra season has remained limited to only four months. "The move of the government to start winter season Char Dham Yatra to boost tourism throughout the year is a step in the right direction", says Gulati. In some quarters there are reservations about the success of the winter season Char Dham Yatra. Kaushal Sikhola, a prominent priest here says that there is no provision for such a yatra in the scriptures. "The pilgrims come to pay obeisance at the four holy shrines. The winter season Char Dham Yatra is not likely to be a success, since the devotees, guided by deep seated beliefs, may think that praying at the idols of the deities at their wintry abodes, will not be as fruitful as praying at the holy shrines of Char Dhams", opines Shikhola.

However, Praveen Jha Shastri of Jwalapur has a different opinion: "Praying at the Chal Vigrah if properly installed, at one place, is as blessed as praying at these idols at the other place." However, it remains to be seen how far the state government succeeds in creating adequate infrastructure for the winter season Char Dham Yatra and how far the new experiment succeeds.