The Uttarakhand High Court on Monday ordered a stay on state Cabinet’s decision to permit Char Dham Yatra (four pilgrimage sites) with a limited number of pilgrims. The court, which said the decision was in public interest, has also ordered live streaming of Char Dham shrines.

The high court has scheduled the next hearing in the case to July 7.

The order of the court came after Chief Minister Tirath Singh Rawat-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in the state had on June 25 decided to allow pilgrims only from the districts in which the shrines are located – Chamoli, Uttarkashi, Rudraprayag – from July 1.

The Cabinet had mandated RT-PCR tests for the pilgrims, who would only be allowed in a limited number.

Ahead of the now-annuled Char Dham Yatra for the residents of 3 districts of Uttarakhand, additional doses of COVID-19 vaccines were made available to vaccinate the persons involved in the yatra process. After the order, 5,000 more doses were provided to the aforementioned districts. However, Uttarkashi received 10,000 additional doses of vaccine. 

The additional vaccines were also given to the districts of Tehri and Pauri, which are on the way of the Char Dham Yatra.

CM Rawat had also instructed to vaccinate all those who will be in direct contact with pilgrims of the yatra before its commencement, to ensure the safety of both the locals and the visitors. Guidelines were issued to the concerned officials to vaccinate the priests, shopkeepers, Dhaba operators, local residents, mule operators, cab drivers, and others associated with the Chardham yatra timely.

In June, the chief minister had also extended an invitation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit Char Dham after the COVID-19 situation gets better.