On his last day of a three-day tour to Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath offered prayers at Kedarnath temple on Sunday Morning.

Thousands of people greeted the chief minister, chanting Jai Shri Ram. Badri Kedar Temple Committee chairman Ajay Ajayendra, Rudraprayag district panchayat president Amardei Shah, BJP district president Mahavir Panwar, District Magistrate Saurabh Gaharwar, Superintendent of Police Vishakha and other dignitaries welcomed Yogi Adityanath at the Kedarnath helipad by presenting him a bouquet.

The priest community welcomed Yogi with the traditional chanting of mantras. The chief minister prayed for the welfare of the people of the country and the state.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Secretary Durga Shankar Mishra, Principal Secretary (Home) Sanjay Prasad and Principal Secretary Tourism Mukesh Meshram were also present on the occasion.

After offering prayers at Kedarnath temple on Sunday, the chief minister said that the places of pilgrimage were the bases of both faith as well as national integration and under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the sense of respect for heritage was presenting the new aura of the new India.

“Kedarpuri was hit by a disaster in 2013, but today, thanks to the confidence of the local people and the strong determination, inspiration, and guidance of the prime minister, both pilgrimage sites, Shri Kedarnath and Shri Badrinath, are adding to the glory of New India,” he said.

Yogi further said that this was  what respect for heritage means. “Lakhs of pilgrims are coming here, which is a matter of inspiration for us. It draws our attention towards a new future,” Yogi remarked.

CM Yogi praised the timely and quality of work going on in Kedarnath.  “This overflowing crowd of devotion presents a new picture of the new India, which has vision and foresight,” he pointed out.