INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Uttarakhand's Kedarnath and Badrinath, coupled with rains and landslide in Lambagad disrupted pilgrimage to the Himalayan shrines for hours
on Tuesday, with the authorities preventing devotees from moving beyond Linchauli and Bhimbali.However, as the weather cleared up towards
the evening, the trek route to Kedarnath was opened for the devotees, Rudraprayag District Magistrate Mangesh Ghildiyal said
Over, 4,000 pilgrims safely returned to Gaurikund by the trek route after paying obeisance at Kedarnath despite bad weather, he said, adding
that over 400 pilgrims are still stranded at the shrine.Nearly half a dozen Congressmen, including former chief minister Harish Rawat, the
party's Rajya Sabha MP Pradeep Tamta and local MLA Manoj Rawat were stranded at the shrine throughout the day as the weather was not
conducive for flying choppers on which they were supposed to return, Rudraprayag SP Prahlad Meena told PTI.Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh
spoke to Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat over phone to take a stock of the situation and offered all help in case of an
emergency.Continuous snowfall since morning at Kedarnath disrupted the pilgrimage to the shrine for several hours
authority here said snowfall at Badrinath has blocked the road at Kanchan Ganga.Rubble from a landslide triggered by rains at Lambagad about
15 km from Badrinath kept the highway enroute the shrine blocked till 4 pm, with vehicles carrying pilgrims stranded on either side the
boulders laying on the road, Chamoli district police said.However, the route has now been opened and efforts are on to first let the
vehicles stranded between Badrinath and Lambagad pass
After that vehicles, waiting in long queues near Joshimath, to go to Badrinath, will be allowed to move, it said.The Rishikesh-Yamunotri
national highway was also blocked by huge boulders falling from a hill at Dabarkot, leaving hundreds of pilgrims stranded for around four
Lord Shiva and to test what he termed as the truth of BJP's claims over reconstruction work carried out at Kedarpuri, the township around
