Dehradun: Preparations for the revered Char Dham Yatra in Uttarakhand have officially begun with a special focus on improving health services on the Badrinath Dham and Kedarnath Dham Yatra routes.
The doors for the Gangotri-Yamunotri and Kedarnath Dham will open for the pilgrims on May 10, officially kicking off the Uttarakhand Chardham Yatra 2024.
In line with the preparations for the holy pilgrimage, the Uttarakhand Health Department has completed all groundwork to provide better health services to the pilgrims in the Char Dham Yatra.
Health Secretary Dr R Rajesh Kumar informed about the same and assured that pilgrims will be offered better health services this time on the travel routes.
The special focus of the Uttarakhand government is to bolster health services on the Badrinath Dham and Kedarnath Dham Yatra routes.
Giving information about the preparations for the Char Dham Yatra, State Health Secretary Dr R Rajesh Kumar said that the state government is trying to make the journey smooth and organized in every possible way.
He said that the website of the Tourism Department has gone live, in which a column of health parameters has been kept wherein pilgrims will have to fill in complete information related to their health to assist with their treatments at their time of need.
The State Health Secretary also said that the hospitals in both the pilgrimage routes have started the process of procuring high-quality equipment for the hospitals in both of the areas. Dr R Rajesh Kumar also said that the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) has been prepared in 11 languages for the Char Dham Yatra.
"To make the journey of pilgrims smooth and safe, the Health Department has prepared Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) in nine local languages including Gujarati, Marathi, and Telugu along with Hindi, and English, and sent it to other states," he said.
He further informed that SOP has been sent to other states. So that the pilgrims coming from other states can follow the health-related guidelines in their languages.
Health Secretary Dr R Rajesh Kumar said that 50 screening points have been made on the Yatra route for the health facility of the pilgrims.
Kumar said that these screening points have been kept along with the registration point, wherein 28 parameters of the pilgrims including high blood pressure, and diabetes will be checked.
The Char-Dham yatra in Uttarakhand consists of visiting four temples, Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri, and Yamunotri.
This year, the Char Dham Yatra will begin on May 10, with the opening of three of the four shrines, including Gangotri, Yamunotri, and Kedarnath. The Char Dham Yatra holds profound spiritual significance in Hinduism. This journey typically occurs from April-May to October-November.
It is believed that one should complete the Char Dham Yatra in a clockwise direction.
Hence, the pilgrimage starts from Yamunotri, proceeds towards Gangotri, onto Kedarnath, and finally ends at Badrinath. —ANI
