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- Spanners in pilgrims' progress at Kedarnath From: rajugusain@yahoo.co.in
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Spanners in pilgrims' progress at Kedarnath
Posted by: "rajugusain@yahoo.co.in" rajugusain@yahoo.co.in rajugusain
Sun Jun 22, 2008 9:47 am (PDT)
Spanners in pilgrims' progress at Kedarnath
By Raju Gusain in Kedarnath
http://www.mailtoday.in/showstory. aspx?queryed= 9&querypage= 12&boxid= 42615156& parentid= 7501&eddate= Jun%2022% 202008%2012: 00AM
THE PILGRIMS may ascend to the Kedarnath shrine in Rudraprayag district with high hopes and reverence. But the poor facilities sometimes make their visit not so memorable. The visitors often have unpleasant experiences to share. The Uttarakhand tourism ministry is aware of the tourists' sufferings but counter them with excuses. Kedarnath is located about 3,584 m above sea level. The 14- km trek starts from Gaurikund. Traffic congestion is common on the single lane Sonprayag- Gaurikund highway because of inadequate parking facilities at Gaurikund. No efforts have been made to develop a separate trek route for pilgrims. After Rambara — 7 km from Gaurikund — there are many shorter routes that can be developed for the smooth movement of the visitors. The tourism ministry makes tall claims about banning plastic in Kedarnath. But there is a different picture on the ground. To add to the plastic woes, the road leading to the shrine is uneven and has no
drainage facility. The pony operators ' rule' the route. They do not follow the basic guidelines. Most of the visitors chant, " The pony operators are just unbearable." According to official sources, about 12,000 ponies currently operate on the route. K. S. Narasimha Reddy, a devotee from Hyderabad, says, " The 14- km trek is littered with dung. The pony operators give no space to pilgrims and push them around. Though the local administration has deployed some sanitary staff, they are inadequate. The visitors come to the mountain for fresh air, but the journey to Kedarnath reeks." Ansuya Prasad Bhatt, chairman of Badrinath- Kedarnath temple committee ( BKTC), says, " Pony operators often bully pilgrims in Kedarnath. We have lodged a complaint with the state government." The tourism ministry is also aware of the malpractices adopted by pony operators. State tourism minister, Prakash Pant, says, " We have received complaints against pony
operators. Tourism has grown manifold in Kedarnath in recent times. We are in the process of finalising a separate board — the Char Dham Vikas Parishad. The board will manage the journey to Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri and Yamunotri." The BKTC, a government body managing the Hindu shrines in Badrinath and Kedarnath, takes care of the pilgrims at the temple complex. Last year, 557,923 devotees visited Kedarnath. This year 1.5 lakh pilgrims have visited the shrine so far.
MAIL TODAY
22 June, 2008
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@ http://uttarakhand.org & http://uttarakhand.net
JAI UTTARAKHAND!
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