Expressing deep concern on the pathetic condition of arrangements at the Char Dham Yatra, Kedarnath MLA Manoj Rawat has said that no one in government is willing to take responsibility of the Yatra.
He said that in absence of any initiative, the arrangements for the Yatra have gone haywire. “The Yatra has only started and one female pilgrim has lost her life when a part of a glacier fell on her. The Yatra has become unsafe in month of May itself. During the rainy season the condition would further get worse,’’ he said.
The Congress MLA said that the government becomes active only when either Prime Minister Narendra Modi or any other dignitary visits Char Dham. He alleged that PM Modi has made Kedarnath as a VIP Dham for the high flying dignitaries.
“In this VIP Dham no one cares about the poor pilgrims who visit the shrine in large numbers,’’ he quipped.
Rawat suggested that the old Chatti system should be revived for the Yatris. In the Chatti system, followed in past when the yatra was done on foot, arrangements for the Yatris were done at many places located along the path.
Rawat said that one has witnessed the condition of the fabricated cottages after this year’s heavy snowfall. “It would be prudent to adopt the old practice of managing the Yatra,’’ he said.