DEHRADUN: Uttarakhand is grappling with the relentless monsoon rains, it have not only severely disrupted daily life but has also brought the revered Char Dham Yatra to a grinding halt.
Pilgrim numbers have plummeted from an average of 50,000 to just 15,000 daily over the past week, with the pilgrimage halted three times due to the hazardous conditions.
Amidst the escalating crisis, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday telephoned Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami to assess the situation across the State, including the critical Kedarnath pilgrimage route.
Shah assured the deployment of the National Disaster Response Force and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police to ensure the smooth continuation of the Char Dham Yatra. "Given the severity of the situation," Home Minister Shah affirmed, "the Central government's emergency relief agencies, NDRF and ITBP, are being promptly deployed.
This is to ensure that the Char Dham Yatra remains uninterrupted and pilgrims face no inconvenience in their movement.
According to district administrative sources, Ratgaon, the largest village in the Sol region with a population of 4,000, remains isolated for the 12th consecutive day. Residents are confined to their homes, and although ration supplies are currently adequate, health concerns are escalating.
The village has over 20 elderly residents with health issues and 9 pregnant women, adding to the urgency of the situation. "Elderly and sick people cannot reach the hospital," Manveer Singh, a villager, lamented. "Pregnant women are facing various problems, including health check-ups," he added.
Villagers are urgently demanding the construction of a Bailey bridge to restore connectivity to Ratgaon, after a temporary culvert at Ghatgad Gadera in Dhadharbagad was washed away 12 days ago.
Major highways and rural roads across the state continue to be severely impacted by landslides and debris, making travel hazardous. Although Saturday brought a slight respite from the incessant rains, key arteries remain disrupted.
District disaster management officer, Jai Prakash Singh Panwar, told TNIE, the Yamunotri Highway has been closed for the past eight days, with traffic still not fully restored.
While movement has resumed at Silai Band, vehicular traffic remains halted beyond Ojri. The Gangotri Highway is also facing persistent challenges. A 25-meter section of the road near Papargad in Bhatwari collapsed again, halting traffic for approximately eight hours before the highway could be reopened around 2:30 pm.
Continuous downpours are also causing persistent problems at Netala, Papargad, Bishanpur, and Helgugad. In Chamoli district, the Badrinath Highway experienced a two-hour traffic halt on Friday morning due to debris at the Ummatta landslide zone -- an area that has been a persistent problem for over a year, significantly impacting local businesses, including the family of hotel owner Ashish Dimri.