Monday, 24 July 2023 | PNS | DEHRADUN
The Uttarakhand High Court has issued a notice of contempt of court to the Rudraprayag district magistrate Saurabh Gaharwar for disobeying the order of the court regarding maintaining sanitation on the Kedarnath Yatra track. The copy of the order which was issued on Thursday was uploaded on the weekend on the court’s website.
The petitioner in the case, activist Gauri Maulekhi informed that in 2013 the management of the Kedarnath Yatra was taken over by the district magistrate from the Zila Panchayat on the pretext that the Zila Panchayat was not discharging its duties regarding maintenance of the track and sanitation issues that arise because of the horses/mules used to transport pilgrims on the route.
In 10 years, the issue of sanitation remains grave and has worsened with carcasses of animals and slush caused by dung and animal urine making the Yatra a perilous and filthy experience for pedestrians, she said. About 2.5 lakh kilogrammes of dung and 1.5 lakh litres of urine is generated by 14,000 equines and their carcasses are strewn along the Yatra track, Maulekhi added.
Hearing a contempt petition filed by Maulekhi, Justice Ravindra Maithani has asked the Rudraprayag DM to respond to various questions. The court has asked whether the compliance of the court’s order of 2013 has been ensured. It has asked what steps were taken in the current Yatra season to ensure compliance of the said order.
The DM has been asked what mechanism has been put in place to regularly check that cleanliness is maintained both on the route as well as at Kedarnath. Asking if the cleanliness has been ensured by manual labour or some mechanical devices have also been put in place, the court has asked who is bearing those expenses and what amount was spent on maintaining cleanliness of route as well as the town of Kedarnath in the present Yatra season. It has also been indicated in the order that the court may appoint a commissioner to physically check if any mechanism has been put in place to maintain sanitation.
