Uttarakhand HC extends stay on Char Dham Yatra till Jul 28 in view of Covid

The Uttarakhand High Court on Thursday has extended the stay on the Char Dham Yatra till July 28.

The High Court, earlier on June 28, had stayed the state Cabinet's decision permitting Char Dham Yatra with a limited number of pilgrims and also ordered live streaming of Char Dham shrines. In view of Covid-19 and poor health preparedness, the decision of the government has been put on hold by High Court.

Meanwhile, the Uttarakhand Government on Tuesday filed the Special Leave Petition (SPL) at the Supreme Court against the Uttarakhand High Court's order staying the Char Dham Yatra.

Earlier on June 25, the State Cabinet decided to partially open the Char Dham yatra for locals in limited numbers from July 1. Initially, it was decided, the yatra would be opened for residents of Chamoli, Uttarkashi, and Rudraprayag districts with a cap on the number of pilgrims to visit the temples daily.

The state government had said that it would be issuing guidelines for the pilgrimage for people from three districts. Government spokesperson Subodh Uniyal informed the three districts from where pilgrims were allowed were Chamoli, Uttarkashi, and Rudraprayag.

The four pilgrimage sites in Uttarakhand are Badrinath, Kedarnath, Yamunotri, and Gangotri.