The portals of the Badrinath temple in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district will open at 7:10 am on April 27, authorities said on Thursday. As per tradition, the time and date for the opening of the famous temple were decided at a religious ceremony held at the erstwhile Tehri royal palace on the occasion of Basant Panchami, the Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee said.
The 'Gaadu Ghada' (oil pitcher) yatra will begin on April 12, it said. As part of the yatra, a pitcher containing sesame oil is carried to the Himalayan temple ahead of its opening every year. The portals of Badrinath, a temple dedicated to Hindu deity Vishnu were closed for the winter season on November 19. It remains snowbound throughout winter and is reopened at the start of summer.
The Badrinath shrine is one of the four pilgrimage sites referred to as 'Char Dham.' The other sites falling under the group of four are Yamunotri, Gangotri and Kedarnath. The shrine remains open for six months every year (between the end of April and the beginning of November). While speaking to the media last week, Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Siungh Dhami said that the Char Dham Yatra would be commencing in the next four months.
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