Doors of Kedarnath Dham closed for winter season

Kedarnath (Uttarakhand) [India], November 3 : The doors of the revered Kedarnath Dham were closed for the winter season on Sunday on the occasion of Bhai Dooj.
The doors were closed with Vedic rituals and religious traditions amidst the chanting of Om Namah Shivay, Jai Baba Kedar and the devotional tunes of the Indian Army band.
As per a government release, more than 15,000 devotees were present to witness the closing of the doors. The temple was decorated with flowers in a grand manner from the day of Diwali itself.
The process of closing the doors started at 5 am on Sunday in the presence of Badrinath- Kedarnath Temple Committee (BKTC) President Ajendra Ajay, Acharyas, Vedpathis and priests of BKTC performed Samadhi Puja of the self-manifested Shivalinga of Lord Kedarnath. The self-manifested Shivalinga was given Samadhi form with ashes, local flowers, Bel leaves. At 08:30 am, Baba Kedar's Panchmukhi Utsav Doli was brought out of the temple, after which the doors of Shri Kedarnath temple were closed.
With the closing of the doors, Baba Kedar's Panchmukhi Utsav Doli left for its first stop Rampur. Thousands of devotees left on foot with Baba's Panchmukhi Doli. Bhandaaras were organized at various places for the devotees. Today the weather in Kedarnath was clear. Due to snow around, cold winds also kept blowing but there was great enthusiasm among the devotees.
On the occasion of closing of the doors, BKTC President Ajendra Ajay said that during this Yatra period, a record more than 16.5 lakh pilgrims reached Kedarnath Dham. The grand and divine Kedarpuri is being rebuilt with the vision of the country's illustrious Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Kedarnath Dham Yatra was successfully conducted under the guidance of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami. He earlier thanked the personnel of BKTC, police - administration, various departments related to the travel arrangements, NDRF, SDRF, ITBP etc. for the successful conduct of the Yatra.
As per a BKTC release, Baba Kedar's Panchmukhi Doli will stay overnight at Rampur today on November 3, will stay overnight at Vishwanath Temple Guptkashi on Monday, November 4 and will reach the winter seat Omkareshwar Temple Ukhimath on Tuesday, November 5. In winter, Baba Kedar's worship will be performed in Omkareshwar Temple Ukhimath itself.
The doors of Badrinath Dham will close on November 17 this year. The doors of Gangotri Dham were closed for winter on Saturday, November 2. The doors of 'Yamnotri Dham' will be closed on Sunday, in the afternoon, on the occasion of Bhaiyadooj.
The doors of holy Gurudwara Hemkund Sahib and Lokpal Laxman temple were closed on October 10. The doors of the second Kedar Madmaheshwar Ji will be closing on November 20 and the doors of the third Kedar Tungnath Ji will close on Monday, November 4. The doors of the fourth Kedar Rudranath Ji were closed on October 17.