At the Kedarnath Temple, Assamese Jaapi commands attention.
Guwahati: The Assamese Jaapi was observed on the temple’s entrance gate as the Kedarnath Dham doors opened for pilgrims on Tuesday.
As many as 20,000 quintals of flowers were also used to beautify the shrine in a special show of art and culture at the Kedarnath shrine.
The Assamese Jaapi is a conical hat wrapped with colourful silk and cotton fabric and built of bamboo.
It serves as the Assamese people’s symbol of respect and dignity, much as the gamusa.
It should be noted that on Tuesday morning, amid fervent drumbeats and the chanting of shlokas (hymns), the revered Kedarnath Dham’s doors were opened to pilgrims. One of the most sacred pilgrimage places in the nation is Kedarnath Dham, the home of Lord Shiva.
However, the Uttarakhand state government had stopped accepting registration requests from travellers for the Kedarnath Dham Yatra. The decision was made after the Meteorological Department provided warnings of unfavourable weather conditions in the upcoming days and in light of the significant snowfall along the pilgrimage path.
The state government decided to halt accepting applications after the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a warning for significant snowfall on the pilgrims’ journey to Kedarnath Dham.
According to an official statement, the weather is expected to remain inclement in Kedarghati over this week. The statement read, “The weather is expected to remain bad in Kedarghati for the next one week.
On the alert of the Meteorological Department, the state government has stopped the registration of the visit to Kedarnath Dham. The heavy snowfall in Kedarnath has created difficulties for the administration.”
\“Registration of pilgrims for the Kedarnath pilgrimage has been stopped in view of the snowfall of three to four feet on the Kedarnath pedestrian route and Dham and the warning by the Mete Department,” the statement added.
Meanwhile, the first group of pilgrims departed Haridwar for the Char Dham Yatra on Saturday. The holy Yatra set out on the auspicious occasion of Akshay Tritiya from the Yamunotri Dham.
