The portals of the holy temple of Badrinath were opened today.
Bengaluru: The portals of the holy temple of Badrinath were opened today.
The gates of the Himalayan temple were opened at 4.30 am by its chief priest Rawal Ishwari Prasad Nambudiri in the presence of a limited number of shrine board official, said media incharge of Devasthanam Board Harish Gaud, as reported by News 18.
The priests appeared in masks and maintained social distance through the process.
The website added that the first pooja was performed on behalf of Prime Minister Narendra Modi praying for the welfare of mankind.
It further added that though the crowd of devotees was missing from the opening ceremony, the temple was decorated with 10 quintals of flowers and glittering with lights.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat and Tourism Minister Satpal Maharaj congratulated devotees on the opening of the temple and expressed hope that the coronavirus pandemic will be defeated and the chardham yatra will begin as soon as possible.
It should be noted that Shri Badrinath temple is the last of the Chardham, which also includes Shri Kedarnath, Gangotri, and Yamunotri temples, to be opened this year. As per another popular website, earlier, the temple was scheduled to be opened on 30 April, but due to the coronavirus-induced nationwide lockdown, the opening date was shifted to 15 May.
The portals of Gangotri and Yamunotri temples were opened on 26 April, while that of Shri Kedarnath opened on 29 April.
However, due to the lockdown restrictions, the Chardham Yatra has not been opened for devotees.
Last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered prayers at the Badrinath temple, the last day of his two-day visit to Uttarakhand.
He had reached Badrinath after spending around 20 hours at the Himalayan shrine of Kedarnath.
Modi had also offered prayers at the innermost sanctum in Badrinath, another temple in Uttarakhand’s “char dham” religious circuit, dedicated to Lord Vishnu.
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