As campaigning for the last phase of the staggered Lok Sabha elections came to an end, Prime Minister Narendra Modi began his two-day visit to the holy shrines of Kedarnath and Badrinath in Uttarakhand on Saturday. Dressed in a traditional pahari outfit, Modi trekked around 2 kilometres to a holy cave near Kedarnath Shrine, where he was seen doing darshan and puja for about half an hour this morning. On request of media, accompanying the prime minister on his way to the cave, camerapersons were allowed to take initial pictures of him. As per the latest reports, Modi is going to sit for meditation in the next few hours and will continue it till Sunday morning. However, no media person will be allowed inside in the vicinity of the cave during the period.
"Prime Minister Narendra Modi trekked 2 kms to the cave and on request of media allowed cameras to make initial visuals. PM will begin his meditation in a few hours which will last till tomorrow morning. No media or personnel will be allowed in the vicinity of the cave," the news agency ANI reported.
Sources: Prime Minister Narendra Modi trekked 2 kms to the cave and on request of media allowed cameras to make initial visuals. PM will begin his meditation in a few hours which will last till tomorrow morning. No media or personnel will be allowed in the vicinity of the cave. https://t.co/8K3ZnE29kC
— ANI (@ANI) May 18, 2019
During his visit to Kedarnath, Modi also took stock of the re-development projects, followed by the trail of destruction in a series of cloudbursts in the temple town in 2013. This is Modi's fourth visit to the temple in the last two years.
To kick-start his two-day visit, Modi reached the Jolly Grant airport in Dehradun at around 9 am on Saturday. Stringent security arrangements were in place for the prime minister's visit, DGP (law and order) Ashok Kumar said.Â
Modi is scheduled to leave for Badrinath after completion of the morning prayers at the Himalayan Shrine of Kedarnath on Sunday. Post his Badrinath visit, the prime minister will fly back to Delhi via Dehradun in late Sunday afternoon.