By Our Staff Reporter
Dehradun, 10 Apr: Governor Lt General Gurmit Singh (Retd) on Monday held a meeting with high officials of the government in connection with the preparations for the Uttarakhand Chardham Yatra at the Raj Bhavan, here. District Magistrates, Senior Superintendents of Police, other officers of the districts related to Chardham Yatra were also present over video conferencing.
Lt-General Singh said that to conduct the Yatra in a smooth, easy and systematic manner, mutual coordination of all the stakeholders including the departments is necessary. It is not just a 9 to 5 duty, full dedication would be required. Every visitor coming for the Chardham Yatra ought to be considered the state’s brand ambassador, so should leave fully satisfied.
He added that, taking lessons from the experiences of the past years, a plan to deal with the possible challenges is needed. He said that every department should identify its first responder and train them. These first responders would assist pilgrims and be major contributors to successful travel operations. They should also be told how to behave with the visitors and always be ready to help. Every adverse situation had to be anticipated. Along with providing the basic facilities, the pilgrims’ safety should also be taken care of on the yatra routes. The participation and cooperation of the local people must be taken in the Chardham Yatra.
The Governor added that services should be provided value addition. New technology should be introduced to facilities through artificial intelligence, drones, mobile apps, etc.
Departmental officials told him that all the preparations would be ensured before the start of the yatra.
Secretary, Transport, Arvind Singh Hayanki stated that, around 1600 buses have been arranged for the yatra; 300 additional buses are also being arranged. Green cards are being issued to all the vehicles plying on the yatra route.
Secretary, Health, Dr R Rajesh Kumar stated that health ATMs are being set up along the yatra routes, in which 72 types of testing facilities would be available. At the local level, people are also being trained as Swasthya Mitras, who will help those staying in hotels, etc., in case of any kind of emergency.
Additional Secretary, Tourism, Pooja Garbyal said that online registration has been started from the month of February. So far, more than 12 lakh people have registered for the Chardham Yatra. The process of registration for the Hemkund Sahib Yatra has also started, for which registration has been done by 2000 people. A token system will be introduced for queue management for darshan in Dhams, so that unnecessary crowd can be avoided during darshan. Work on temporary toilets on the yatra routes is in progress.
Additional Secretary, Civil Aviation, C Ravi Shankar added that heli services of 9 operators are available for the Chardham Yatra, whose rates have been fixed. Online booking of heli services is also being done through IRCTC. A nodal officer is being deployed for the grievance redressal process related to heli booking.
Managing Director, GMVN, Vinod Giri Goswami said that temporary tent colonies are being constructed by GMVN. Fourteen tour packages have been made for the tourists coming for the yatra. Local products will be given as gifts to the pilgrims so that they take good memories from here.
Principal Secretary RK Sudhanshu, Secretary Nitesh Kumar Jha, Secretary to the Governor Ravinath Raman, Secretary Dilip Jawalkar, ADG Law and Order Dr V Murugesan, IG, Garhwal, KS Nagnyal, Additional Secretary Nitin Singh Bhadauria, various departmental officers including Vikas Navneet Pandey were present on the occasion.
