Police appeal Char Dham pilgrims to stay at Srinagar due to inclement weather
Authorities notice considerable decline in number of pilgrims due to bad weather
Monday, 01 May 2023 | PNS | DEHRADUN
The Pauri police on Sunday appealed to the Char Dham pilgrims going towards Kedarnath and Badrinath via Srinagar to not go ahead as a precautionary measure due to inclement weather in both the places. They appealed to the pilgrims, especially those who did not have adequate arrangements for staying in Kedarnath and Badrinath, to stay in Srinagar and move ahead after the weather condition improves there, said station house officer of Srinagar police station, Ravi Kumar. Kumar told The Pioneer that the police have been making the pilgrims aware about the weather on Char Dham routes as per the recent orders of the director general of police Ashok Kumar. He said that the police did not force anybody to stay in Srinagar but made them aware of the inclement weather ahead. Many of them stayed in Srinagar to wait for the weather to clear up while those who had booked accommodation in hotels in Badrinath and Kedarnath areas moved ahead. He said that the number of pilgrims has also declined in the last two days as people have started planning their trips considering the weather. The recent appeal of DGP has also raised awareness among people to not go ahead on Char Dham routes during bad weather, added the SHO. The DGP on Saturday had instructed respective senior/ superintendents of police of Pauri, Rudraprayag, Chamoli and Uttarkashi districts to keep the pilgrims updated about weather forecasts at all the checkpoints located on Char Dham routes in view of inclement weather in the State. He also directed them to upgrade security arrangements for pilgrims near glaciers in Kedarnath. Kumar had further directed that personnel of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) should be deployed on both sides of the glacier in Kedarnath with wireless sets while making efficient arrangements to ensure devotees cross the glacier carefully. Pilgrims must be directed to a safe place immediately on both sides of the glacier if the authorities notice anything unusual that can potentially harm them, the DGP has directed.
It is pertinent to mention here that higher altitude regions in the State including Kedarnath have been experiencing rain and snowfall for some days now.
