Religious leaders call for reviving traditional Char Dham routes to boost homestays
PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/ Uttarkashi
The Gangotri MLA, Suresh Chauhan said on Friday that Uttarkashi would soon be officially declared as Dharam Nagari. “The official procedures are now underway and a positive announcement will be made soon,” he said while speaking to the delegation comprising leaders of some Hindu organisations, including Vishwa Hindu Parishad, which met him on the same issue. “I will personally pursue the matter on priority as it is our election pledge. I will not just write to the chief minister but will meet him too,” the MLA assured the delegation.
Notably, the municipal board had recently passed a unanimous resolution calling for officially declaring Uttarkashi as a religious city on the lines of Haridwar.
The delegation presented the MLA with key proposals related to declaring Uttarkashi a religious city, protecting the Char Dham traditional pilgrimage routes and declaring Gangotri as a Kumbh Mela area.
The delegation members informed that a day earlier, various religious organisations had submitted a joint memorandum to the chief minister, demanding among others protection of Chardham’s old bridal routes and home-stay employment.
The district VHP president, Ajay Prakash Badola stressed the need to revive the traditional Char Dham pilgrimage routes. While mentioning that the Dev Dolis still travel on foot, he said that if basic facilities are developed along these routes, local people would find employment through homestays in every village.
