Badrinath Dham portals to close for winter session today

Dehradun, Nov 19: Badrinath Dham portals will close on Saturday evening for the winter session. It is one of the four sites of the Char Dham Yatra.

President of the Shri Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee, Ajendra Ajay told ANI that the portals of Badrinath Dham will be closed for winter at 3.35 p.m. today.

He also said that Devdolis will leave for Pandukeshwar (Joshimath) on Sunday.

Meanwhile in late October, Kedarnath Dham portals were closed for the winter season.

The doors of Kedarnath, which is one of the eleventh Jyotirlinga, were shut with the rituals amid the chanting of Vedic hymns accompanied by music played by local musical instruments, the tunes of the army band, and cheers of scores of devotees.

It is believed that every year, Lord Kedarnath becomes austere for six months of winter in the Himalayas for the welfare of the people.

The gates of Badrinath and Kedarnath Dhams remain closed for six months in the winter.

Chardham Yatra began this year on May 3.

The Yatra or pilgrimage is a tour of four holy sites - Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath and Badrinath - nestled high up in the Himalayas. In Hindi, 'char' means four and 'dham' refers to religious destinations.