By Our Staff Reporter
Dehradun, 13 May: Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami today directed the officials concerned to do away with the system of VIP darshans at the Char Dham shrines. The VIPs coming to the Char Dham shrines will henceforth not get any special privilege for the darshan and prayers at these shrines and they would be treated at par with the common devotees, the CM stressed.
According to reports, the VVIP entrance gates at Kedarnath have already been closed. It may be recalled that this season, due to unprecedented rush of devotees at Char Dham shrines and at Kedarnath, in particular, the government has faced criticism for its alleged poor handling of the Char Dham Yatra. However, the government seems to be waking now to the need for special arrangements at the Char Dham shrines and along the Yatra routes.
Dhami today also instructed the police and administration to conduct the Yatra in a systematic manner strictly according to the rules. The Chief Minister said that the Police Department should not only strictly follow the rules but also take extra precautions for better management of crowds and safety of the pilgrims.
He claimed that the government is continuously monitoring the Char Dham Yatra. He said that managing the Char Dham Yatra this year is a big challenge, but the government is making every effort to streamline it. He said that all the casualties that had happened (so far, 28 deaths) in the Char Dham Yatra were not due to chaos and stampede but health complications of the deceased. The Chief Minister also urged the youth coming for Char Dham Yatra to let the elderly and women to have darshan before them.
