Dehradun: The Char Dham Yatra has been suspended for the next 24 hours following a heavy rain alert for Uttarakhand, officials said on Sunday. This followed a cloudburst in the Uttarkashi district. Nine workers are missing from a hotel construction site.
“I have given instructions to the police and administration to stop the pilgrims in Haridwar, Rishikesh, Srinagar, Rudraprayag, Sonprayag and Vikasnagar,” Garhwal Division Commissioner Vinay Shankar Pandey has said.
Meanwhile, rescue teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), and the police have been dispatched to the site in Baligarh from where the workers went missing. Search and rescue operations are underway, officials said.
Uttarkashi district magistrate Prashant Arya said that the Yamunotri route has been severely affected due to the cloudburst along the Barkot-Yamunotri Marg that caused severe damage to the hotel construction site.
“Eight-nine workers staying at this under-construction hotel site are missing,” Arya said.
Vinod Kumar Suman, secretary of the disaster management department in Uttarakhand said the government is closely monitoring the situation. Necessary instructions have been passed on to ensure the safety of pilgrims and residents in the region.
Continuous rainfall on Saturday caused severe disruptions across the state, including blockage of the National Highway near Nandprayag and Bhanerpani.
In a post on social media platform X, Chamoli Police stated: “The Badrinath National Highway is blocked near Nandprayag and Bhanerpani. Work is underway to open the road.”
The National Highway near Nandprayag is a critical route for pilgrims travelling to Kedarnath, making the clearance of the road a priority. Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has appealed to the public to remain cautious and avoid unnecessary travel.
