The claims of proper arrangements for the Badrinath pilgrimage were exposed on Sunday when the portals of the shrine were reopened to the public. The national highway 58 to Badrinath was not fully cleared at Kanchan Ganga. Metal sheets were being placed on the snow-covered road to enable flow of traffic. Three JCBs and two bulldozers have been deployed to clear the route of the snow here.
The Chief Minister had also announced that on the eve and the day of reopening of all Char Dham shrines, free meal would be provided by the Garhwal Mandal Vikas Nigam to all the devotees but this was not seen at Badrinath.
Since this temple township has not yet been cleared of snow in many places, some hotels, shops and residences could not be opened by the owners. Earlier on Saturday, before opening of the shrine, many pilgrims had to walk about three kilometres to Badrinath due to the road being closed at Kanchan Ganga.
Though some hotels were open, many were not and due to lack of proper arrangements by the authorities, many devotees had to spend the night under any available shelter. The inconvenience faced by such pilgrims was exacerbated by the light rain experienced here on Saturday night. The managers of the hotels which have been opened are facing problems due to lack of proper water supply.