india

Updated: Apr 29, 2020 10:25 IST

After offering prayers on behalf of Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Gangotri and Yamunotri shrines on the day of the opening of the temples, priests of Kedarnath and Badrinath shrine have also decided to offer the first prayers on behalf of the prime minister.

Satpal Maharaj, minister for culture and tourism in Uttarakhand said that it has been decided to offer the first prayers at Kedarnath and Badrinath on behalf of PM Modi as a sign of expressing gratitude to him for helping in increasing the numbers of pilgrims to these shrines which in turn has boosted the local economy over the years.

“Every year our Prime Minister Modi visits Kedarnath shrine to seek Baba Kedar’s blessings for the well-being of the country, but this time due to the coronavirus pandemic neither he nor any of the pilgrims have been able to come to the shrines. As a sign of gratitude, the first prayers at both Kedarnath and Badrinath shrine will be offered on his behalf for helping boost the local economy of the hills by his visits to the shrines,” Maharaj said.

The minister further added that he would be going to Delhi after the lockdown is lifted to give the offerings from the prayers, holy flowers and holy water, to the Prime Minister.

After the first prayers were offered at the Gangotri shrine on Sunday on behalf of PM Modi, the priests will now send holy Ganga water for the prime minister through the post, as a blessing to strengthen the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.

PM Modi has donated Rs 1100 to Sripanch Mandir Samiti Gangotri on the auspicious occasion of Tritiya Mahaparva. Suresh Semwal, president of the Gangotri Dham Temple Committee, said that the sub-divisional magistrate of Bhatwadi area, Devendra Singh Negi gave the amount sent by Prime Minister Modi to the temple committee.

“After that, we offered the first prayers to Goddess Ganga on behalf of the prime minister to give us the strength to fight the pandemic and win the war against coronavirus,” said Semwal.

Deepak Semwal, secretary of Gangotri Dham Temple Committee said that anyone who offers prayers to Goddess Ganga is “given the holy water of Maa Ganga by the priests of the temple, which is why we are sending it to Prime Minister Modi also, as he offered prayers on Sunday.”

Last year, Uttarakhand chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat gave credit to PM Modi’s frequent visits to the state as the reason behind the record influx of pilgrims to the four holy shrines of the state.

In November, Rawat had tweeted, “This year, more than 34 lakh 81 thousand devotees have visited Chardham and Hemkund Sahib. Prime Minister Modi after visiting Kedarnath and Badrinath shrines gave the message of clean and safe Chardham Yatra to all devotees, which brought a large number of pilgrims here.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the Rudra meditation cave in Kedarnath in May last year. PM Modi spent a day meditating at the Rudra Caves, nearly a kilometer from the Kedarnath shrine. Following his visit, the cave received a significant number of bookings from across the country. He also visited the Badrinath shrine in May last year.