PM Modi offers prayers at Kedarnath Temple

Kedarnath (Uttarakhand) [India], Nov 7 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered prayers at Kedarnath shrine on Wednesday and extended Diwali greetings to soldiers posted on the India-China border.

After offering prayers, Prime Minister Modi met the locals and people gathered at the temple to Lord Shiva, surrounded by snow-capped Garhwal Himalayan range near the Mandakini river.

He later reviewed the ongoing development works in Kedarpuri. The Prime Minister extensively walked around the entire temple complex, where significant reconstruction works are in progress.

He was briefed by senior officials about the progress of the works and interacted briefly with various people present at the temple complex.

The Kedarnath Temple complex is currently the focus of a major development and reconstruction effort, following the severe flood and landslide that affected the region in 2013.

Before offering prayers, the Prime Minister celebrated the festival with jawans of the Indian Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel at Harsil village near the India-China border.

Greeting the soldiers on the occasion, the Prime Minister said that their devotion to duty in the remote icy heights is enabling the strength of the nation and securing the future and the dreams of 125 crore Indians.

In 2014, Prime Minister Modi spent Diwali in Siachen with soldiers.

In the following year, he visited the Punjab border on the festival of lights.

In 2016, Prime Minister Modi went to Himachal Pradesh to celebrate the festival with Indo-Tibetan Border Police personnel at an outpost.

Last year, he celebrated Diwali with jawans at Gurez in Jammu and Kashmir. (ANI)