Uttarakhand HC bans Char Dham Yatra till August 18, raps government over violation of COVID-19 norms

The Nainital High Court on Wednesday banned the Char Dham Yatra till August 18 given the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic situation. The court has also strongly reprimanded the Uttarakhand government for not following COVID-related protocols at tourist places in the state.

The Char Dham Yatra, which includes a visit to the Kedarnath Temple, attracts lakhs of tourists and devotees every year from across the country and abroad. Given COVID-19, the Uttrakhand government had only allowed Chardham Yatra for residents of the three districts including Chamoli, Rudraprayag, and Uttarkashi this year. 

Earlier, the Uttrakhand government had to issue a new guideline by amending the Standard Operating Procedure. Although Uttrakhand High Court, earlier had put a stay on the state government's decision to allow the Char Dham Yatra from July 1 from Chamoli, Rudraprayag, and Uttarkashi districts. Following this, the state government challenged the High Court's decision in the Supreme Court and filed a plea in the Apex Court.

In other news, the Uttarakhand Cabinet, on Tuesday, approved the re-opening of schools for students of classes 6 to 12 from August 1 in light of the decreasing number of coronavirus cases in the state. 

With only 43 new cases in the last 24 hours, the number of active cases in Uttarakhand currently stands at 659. The Cabinet further decided that the monsoon session of the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly will be held from August 23 to August 27.

Till Monday, Uttarakhand reported 3,41,778 COVID-19 cases, out of which 3,27,766 people have so far recovered. A total of 7,359 people have succumbed to the novel coronavirus in the state so far.