Says that the interests of the state have been compromised in the deal with UP on distribution of assets
Tuesday, 10 May 2022 | PNS | Dehradun
Terming the claims of Uttarakhand government on providing every facility to the pilgrims on Char Dham Yatra as hollow, the Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) president Karan Mahara has said that gross mismanagement prevails in the Yatra and the pilgrims are facing many problems. Interacting with the media persons at the Congress Bhawan here on Monday after the end of his Garhwal tour the PCC president said that he visited Kedarnath and Badrinath during his tour and found that the tall claims of the government on Yatra are hollow. He said that medical facilities are lacking on the Char Dham Yatra route and the hospitals don’t have doctors. Mahara added that 16 pilgrims have so far died in the Yatra due to medical issues and accidents and the number could increase in coming days if the government fails to act now. He claimed that during his Kedarnath Yatra he found that pilgrims are forced to wait for entry into the temple in a 1.5 km long queue without basic facilities like toilets and rain shelter. Mahara said that only old toilets are operational in the bridle path of Kedarnath and there are no new toilets. “At one place I found that the foundation of a new toilet was being laid. I found an utter lack of medical facilities. The railings of the bridle path are damaged at many places in Kedarnath,’’ he said. The PCC president claimed that there was no electricity in the Kedarnath shrine on the day its portals opened. Similarly the Badrinath town was without water and electricity for two days before opening of portals. He said that in the name of Badrinath master plan, the shops and houses of people are being ravaged.
The PCC president said that the Dhami government is claiming to settle a long pending issue of distribution of assets with the Uttar Pradesh government but the fact is that the interests of the state have been compromised in the deal. He said that the Uttarakhand government has meekly surrendered the land of irrigation department in Haridwar district to UP. He said that now the state administration would have to take permission from the UP government to use this land during Kumbh. Mahara claimed that the interests of the state have been compromised under the pressure of the Union government because Uttarakhand sends only five Members of Parliament (MPs) in comparison to 80 sent by UP.
