Dehradun: Uttarakhand government has assured all the stakeholders that the proposed body, meant to manage the Char Dham Yatra in the state, will not be a copy of the erstwhile Devasthanam Board. The government may prefer to constitute “Uttarakhand Dharmaswa & Tirthatan Parishad”, instead of “Yatra authority” in view of the objections raised by the stakeholders.
Earlier in November 2021, the Uttarakhand government had withdrawn the Char Dham Devasthanam Board Act after facing protest from the priest. Now, the state government is in process of constituting a new body to manage the Char Dham yatra. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has directed the officials concerned to consult all the stakeholders to collect their suggestions.
State government sought the suggestions from stakeholders before constituting Yatra authority
On Thursday, additional chief secretary Anand Vardhan held talks with stakeholders, including association of the pilgrim priests, hotel associations, Panda Panchayat, horse-mule operators, and Dandi Kandi to get their suggestions before the constitution of the new body to manage the Char Dham yatra in the state.
Yatra authority aims to ensure proper management of the Yatra
The government made it clear to them that the new body or authority will be completely different from the erstwhile Devasthanam Board. The stakeholders want that there should not be any intervention in the internal arrangements, worship system and rights of the priests and others. The state government communicated to the stakeholders that the proposed Yatra authority aims to ensure proper management of the Char Dham Yatra in the future.
Three-tier system under the new arrangement
Under the new arrangement, there will be a three-tier system. At the first level, a committee will be constituted under the chairmanship of the chief minister. This committee will be empowered to take important decisions from time to time. The second committee, which will be headed by the chief secretary, will prepare a blueprint for the management of Char Dham Yatra in coordination with different departments. The third committee, to be headed by the Commissioner of Garhwal division, will be tasked to execute the plan for the management of Char Dham Yatra.
Now focus in on preparation of draft proposal
Following the government’s meeting with the stakeholders, the government is now focussing on the preparation of the draft for the constitution of the new body. The final draft may be shared with stakeholders. The state government has already set a deadline as January 30 for the constitution of the new body.
