PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/Jyotirmath
Before the reopening of Badrinath Dham in Chamoli district slated on April 23, Public Works Department secretary Pankaj Pandey inspected the condition of the highway from Jyotirmath to Badrinath on Monday. He also checked the Yatra arrangements and the master plan upon reaching Badrinath. The secretary directed officials to expedite construction works underway in the temple township.
Arriving at Badrinath, the secretary claimed that the road works are complete. There are problems in some stretches but the department has been directed to address these issues. The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) is starting work on the stretch of road which had been cut off near Marwadi last year. Regarding patches where the road between Jyotirmath and Marwadi is narrow, he said that the Forest department has transferred land while local residents are to be compensated for their land. The process will be started soon. The BRO has been directed to start the repair works soon, he said. Responding to official claims, the locals are questioning the delay in even starting the work. With a couple of days left for reopening of Badrinath, the departments concerned are yet to even start working on necessary road repairs on the highway to Badrinath contrary to governmental claims of all arrangements having been made to ensure a safe and convenient pilgrimage. This seven-kilometre stretch of the highway to Badrinath is expected to pose problems for travellers this year too as it did during the previous year, the locals said.
