The portals of the Kedarnath shrine in Rudraprayag district and Yamunotri shrine in Uttarkashi district were closed to the public for the winters on the occasion of Bhaiya Dooj on Friday.
The palanquin of lord Kedarnath was carried to the accompaniment of an army band by devotees towards his winter abode at Ukhimath.
Early on Friday morning, more than a 1000 persons including pilgrims, locals and workers of Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM) offered their obeisance to Kedarnath.
Shortly before 8 AM, the lord's palanquin was brought out of the sanctum sanctorum with hundreds of devotees offering their salutations to the lord.
The portals of the shrine were closed and sealed at about 8 AM in presence of district officials and temple committee officials.
The palanquin of lord Kedarnath was taken around the temple structure once before departing towards Ukhimath along with an army band and throngs of devotees.
The palanquin process will halt in Rampur on Friday night and leave for Guptkashi on Saturday where it will stay the night to reach Ukhimath on Sunday where the deity will be ceremoniously installed at Kedarnath's winter abode of Omkareshwar temple.
Speaking on the occasion, the Kedarnath MlA Shaila Rani Rawat averred that the State Government had succeeded in facilitating a safe and convenient pilgrimage to Kedarnath.
Workers deployed by the NIM and district administration played a vital role working in difficult conditions to systematise resources enabling people from across India and abroad to visit Kedarnath, she added.
Speaking on the occasion, the Rudraprayag district magistrate Raghav langer said that the palanquin of lord Kedarnath in a festive procession of devotees had left for Ukhimath amid security facilitated by the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) personnel, police and district administration staff.
The DM said that proper arrangements had been put in place to ensure the security of the procession of lord Kedarnath's palanquin. He commended the temple committee, NIM, SDRF and police among others for successful conduct of the Kedarnath pilgrimage.
Meanwhile, in Uttarkashi district, the portals of Yamunotri shrine were also closed to the public for the winters in the presence of a large number of devotees.
The portals of this shrine were ceremoniously closed and sealed at about 1:30 PM after which the devotees carrying the palanquin of goddess Yamuna departed towards her winter abode of Kharsali.