Uttarakhand’s former CM posts his hard hitting post on FB undermining the PM’s assurances at Kedarnath

The politics over the prime minister Narendra Modi’s Kedarnath visit is hotting up with Congress, particularly the former chief minister of Uttarakhand Harish Rawat, who himself lost two of the legislative seats he contested from during the last election at the hands of BJP’s nominee Rajesh Shukla etc is too active in face book and twitter countering every BJP move pertaining to Uttarakhand. After the prime minister Narendra Modi’s most successful visit to Kedarnath and his hard hitting anti Congress speech, Rawat was the first bete noire of Modi to have issued a statement contradicting him, saying that the four new projects of Kedarpuri’s renovation and resurrection were that of his, which had already been inaugurated during the Congress’s regime. About seven hours ago from now Harish Rawat has posted an interested article in his FB wall, the translated version of which is as following.
Prime minister Narendra Modi is the third prime minister to visit Kedarnath. The former prime ministers have only sought Lord Shiva’s blessings, whenever they visited Kedarnath, but played no politics. Modiji has now started a new tradition and now visiting temples would denote playing politics and from now onwards temples would be used as platforms to express their political views. The prime minister came for the second time this year, I pray his comes for the third time also, but what has he actually done for the glorfication of KEDARNATH is not yet clear? Amongst the five works that the new government is claiming to start, the work of the GHAT, is already in progress and so is the work of protection.

The work of construction of the crematoriam of Shakaracharya is not such a job that it requires any financial package. This job should be done by the state government through its own resources and we were already bound and committed to do it. We had already worked on this formula and had planned to get it inaugurated by all the four Shankaracharyas of four historic dhams of the country so that a message of passionate unity that was given by Aadi Shankaracharya hundreds of years ago could reach to various nook and corners of the country and I had already formally inaugurated this scheme during my tenure.

There was no work left for which inauguration was not done by him during his tenure. Regarding the construction of Museum, the fixed place had already been allocated and similarly the repair and innovation work of the footpath from Gaurikund to Kedarnath is already underway since his tenure. Had the new BJP government sanctioned plans for new concrete hi tech metalled roads then we would have definitely considered it as their genuine initiative.

The government should have allocated finances for the following says Harish Rawat (1) Allocation of funds for the ropeways from Kedarnath to downward locations like Gauri kund, Rambaada, Sitapuri etc. nearby destinations (2) should have given permission and enough funds to renovate/ repair/ resurrectionof the huge cave in at Mandakini riverside ( Flood Protection Work) (3) Allocation of massive funds to stop and correct/ repair, the destruction of the Bhairav Pahadi ( mountains) which is a permanent feature.(4) the area of CHOWDABADI which is the main point from where the uncontrollable deluge arrived causing so much of unacounted destruction, should have been repaired permanentally by sanctioning massive funds as this may re occur any moment in future.

The prime minister has not even allocated fund for the development of Garud Chatti where he claimed in his speech that he stayed for a protracted period. Harish Rawat said that the majority of the challenging and mandatory works at Kedarpuri has not been touched upon and the prime minister had just entertained innocent people of Uttarakhand and the country by his sweet rhetorics and literally doing nothing. Whatever may be the reality behind the temple develooment but one thing is for sure that politicians don’t even leave spiritual places bereft of politics. Sad?

SUNIL NEGI