Kedarnath
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===The return of Dhara Devi === | ===The return of Dhara Devi === | ||
| − | Locals believed that the removal of the idol on June 17 2013 by officials of the Alaknanda Hydropower Co was the trigger for the 2013 disaster. The idol has been brought back and is housed on an elevated temple. Dhari Devi’s idol was returned | + | Locals believed that the removal of the idol on June 17 [??] 2013 by officials of the Alaknanda Hydropower Co was the trigger for the 2013 disaster. The idol has been brought back and is housed on an elevated temple. Dhari Devi’s idol was returned immediately after the disaster, on June 25. AGENCIES |
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==2013: Faith reinforced== | ==2013: Faith reinforced== | ||
Revision as of 09:11, 26 June 2013
This is a collection of newspaper articles selected for the excellence of their content. |
Contents |
Kedarnath: climate/ cloudbursts
Cloudburst on Kedar Dome no freak event
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
New Delhi: The June 16, 2013 cloudburst over Kedarnath, or to be exact over the mountain peak called Kedar Dome which stands at 6,831m,cannot be called a freak climatic phenomenon. Since 1998,the frequency of such heavy, concentrated rainfall over a short period has increased. Ukhimath witnessed the phenomenon in 1998,followed by a series of such events in 2002 in Phata in Mandakini Valley,Khedgaon in Kumaon,and Agunda in Bhilangar Valley.In 2003,Tehri,too,saw such abnormally high rainfall,as did Ladakh in 2010 which triggered mudslides leading to 255 deaths.
While cloudbursts are a natural hazard, our approach to development increases our vulnerability to hazards, said Dr Anirudh Uniyal,a scientist at Remote Sensing Application Centre, Lucknow.The real reason behind the catastrophe was overloading of the hill slopes with built structures. Until a few decades ago, a visit to Kedarnath was considered hazardous enough for people to start for the pilgrimage early morning and return by late afternoon, said Uniyal.
Temple unscathed by 2013 cloudburst tragedy
Shrine statues,Nandi still intact
Devastated by June 16, 2013 afternoons flash-floods,’Kedarnath town stands virtually razed but for the 1200-year-old Shiva temple built by Adi Shankaracharya. The shrine stands in six feet of debris. The statues and the lingam inside the shrine, as well as that of his mount, Nandi the bull, adorning the 250ft x70ft courtyard, are intact.Call it a miracle, but the Nandi statue and the other idols in the temple are intact, an official told news agencies here, adding that pilgrims who were inside the temple when the cloud burst took place had survived.
The idols
Priest takes Kedar idol to winter home
Yogesh Kumar | TNN
A Kedarnath temple priest kept tradition alive. Lord Shiva’s revered symbol at Kedarnath, the “bhog murti” must be fed daily in what’s called the akhand puja (unbroken worship).
Every winter, the idol is moved to Omkareshwar temple in Ukhimath and returned to Kedarnath in May. Seeing no other option but to carry the idol to its winter abode,
The return of Dhara Devi
Locals believed that the removal of the idol on June 17 [??] 2013 by officials of the Alaknanda Hydropower Co was the trigger for the 2013 disaster. The idol has been brought back and is housed on an elevated temple. Dhari Devi’s idol was returned immediately after the disaster, on June 25. AGENCIES
2013: Faith reinforced
Flash floods can’t sweep away their faith in God
Bella Jaisinghani | TNN 2013/06/23
Much less than shaking people’s belief the Uttarakhand tragedy has reinforced their faith in the twin forces of Shiva and Shakti. Believers insist that nothing remains intact in Kedarnath save the shrine. The shivling remains crowned by offerings of belpatra.
Devotees blame the dis aster on the fact that the statue of Goddess Kali Dhari Devi in Kedarnath guardian deity of Uttara khand, was removed from her temple a day before the cloudburst. The shrine was being shifted for a hydel power project that now lies in ruins. A similar attempt in 1882 had resulted in landslide that had flattened Kedarnath.
The cloudburst of June 2013
