Tourism sector demands rollback of mandatory Char Dham Yatra registration

Traders, hotel owners, priests and others associated with the Yamunotri Dham in Uttarakhand burnt effigies of the state government on Tuesday, protesting against its decisions to limit the number of pilgrims and make their registrations mandatory.

They staged a protest in Barkot Naga here, demanding that the government withdraw its decisions.

They sent a memorandum to Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami through the District Magistrate, stating that the decisions would affect their livelihoods.

Meanwhile, the Uttarakhand government has sought the Centre's approval to a Rs 500-crore scheme for strengthening and expanding health services on the Char Dham Yatra routes.

A Detailed Project Report (DPR) of the scheme was finalised in a meeting in Dehradun on Tuesday.

After the meeting, State Health Minister Dhan Singh Rawat said the DPR is being sent to the Centre for its approval.