Pilgrims visit Badrinath amid heavy snowfall in region

Chamoli (Uttarakhand) [India], November 3 : Badrinath Dham was covered with snow after heavy snowfall in the Chamoli region of Uttarakhand on Monday.
Fresh snowfall was received in the Neelkanth and Nar Narayan mountains while the peak of Hemkund Sahib was also covered in white snow. After the snowfall, cold wave returned to the region on Tuesday morning.
After the Badrinath Dham was reopened for the public, pilgrims visiting the temple got a chance to experience snowfall on the mountain peak.
"It's been a great experience at Badrinath Dham. We had a good 'darshan' at the temple and the weather has also been kind to us," a pilgrim told ANI.
"After an intense period of lockdown, visiting the Badrinath Temple at this hour has been a wholesome experience. All the COVID-19 protocols are in place and it feels great to be able to walk around amid fresh air and gazing at the mountain peaks covered in snow," another pilgrim said.
The administration stated that strict COVID-19 protocols were being followed at the pilgrimage. "The number of pilgrims has increased over time. One lakh people visited the temple since it reopened after lockdown. Thermal scanning and sanitisation facilities are available inside the temple and strict COVID-19 protocols are being followed," Swati S. Bhadauria, District Magistrate, Chamoli, said.