This year, Char Dham Yatra will begin on May 10, with the opening of three of the four shrines, including Gangotri, Yamunotri and Kedarnath. The doors of Badrinath shrine will open on May 12.
The high-altitude shrines remain shut for around six months every year, opening in summer (April or May) and closing with the onset of winter (October or November).
The 60-year-old MLA from the Badrinath assembly seat in Uttarakhand joined the BJP in the presence of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and Union Minister Piyush Goyal in New Delhi.
In a recent announcement, the Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee revealed that the doors of the eleventh Jyotirlinga, Shri Kedarnath Dham, will open for pilgrims on May 10 at 7 am this year.
Hospitals will be opened in Badrinath and Kedarnath before the Chardham Yatra and approval has been received from the cabinet chaired by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami to purchase equipment for the same, said Health Secretary Dr R. Rajesh on Sunday.
Uttarakhand Health Secretary, Dr R Rajesh Kumar, announced on Sunday that new hospitals will be operational in Badrinath and Kedarnath before the Chardham Yatra to provide pilgrims with immediate medical care during the Yatra.
The date for opening of Shri Badrinath Dham doors will be decided on Wednesday on the occasion of Basant Panchami, an authority from Shri Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee said.
After a sudden shift in the weather pattern in the high-altitude areas of Uttarakhand, Badrinath Dham has been experiencing continuous and heavy snowfall since yesterday.
The opening date of Badrinath Dham is to be decided on Basant Panchami at Narendra Nagar Rajmahal in Uttarakhand's Tehri.
The date will be decided after calculating the legal calendar in the presence of Maharaja Manujayendra Shah, MP Mala Rajyalakshmi Shah, Shri Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple C