Uttarakhand High Court on Thursday lifted the ban on Char Dham Yatra, permitting the pilgrimage to go ahead following strict Covid-19 protocols.
The higher court has also ordered devotees to provide a damaging Covid-19 report and double vaccination certificate. It has also capped the quantity of devotees. Only 800 devotees would be permitted at Kedarnath, 1,200 at Badrinath, 600 at Gangotri, and 400 at Yamunotri a day, Asian News International reported.
The verdict comes immediately after the state government withdrew its unique leave petition from the Supreme Court. The higher court had earlier refused to intervene in the matter as the case was pending just before the apex court.
Last week, the state’s advocate common made an oral request to the Chief Justice’s bench to enable the Char Dham Yatra to go ahead.
The Char Dham Yatra is linked to livelihood of thousands in the hill state. Among the stakeholders are temple trusts, restaurants and hotels, tour guides, travel agents, and chopper providers, tourist car owners and other tourist-centric organizations. The yatra gives employment to more than 10,000 folks, forming a micro financial ecosystem that added benefits the shrines and the surrounding places.
Earlier this year, the higher court had banned the Char Dham Yatra citing the threat of Covid-19. The Uttarakhand government moved the Supreme Court against the higher court order. The state cabinet had resolved to start the yatra from July 1, but the higher court stayed that selection on June 28.
In 2019, prior to the outbreak of Covid-19, more than 38 lakh pilgrims took element in the Char Dham Yatra and visited the shrines. The quantity declined to 4.2 lakh in 2020.
The selection to ban the Char Dham Yatra received assistance from many quarters as nicely following the surge in Covid-19 situations immediately after the Uttarakhand government permitted the Kumbh Mela in Haridwar to go ahead earlier this year.