In an effort to ensure the safety and convenience of piligrims, the district authorities of Uttarkashi have issued an order to curb the movement of horses and mules on the Shri Yamunotri Dham foot pilgrimage route.

The District Magistrate Dr. Meherban Singh Bisht issued an order that the maximum number of horses and mules going from Janki Chatti to Yamunotri and vice versa has been limited to 800. Additionally, the time for their movement is restricted to between 4 a.m. and 5 p.m. The District Magistrate has instructed the relevant departments and officials to promptly execute the above-mentioned orders and see to it that they are followed by all. He has also instructed the relevant department and officials to promptly execute the mentioned order.

On May 19, a significant number of devotees visited the holy sites of Gangotri and Yamunotri Dhams in Uttarakhand. By 2 p.m. on Sunday, approximately 10,000 devotees worshipped at Gangotri Dham, while 28,000 pilgrims were en route to Gangotri. Similarly, at Yamunotri Dham, 8,500 people had worshipped, and 20,000 individuals were progressing along the Yamunotri route from various stops.

The order also imposes a complete ban on the movement of horses, mules, and sticks beyond the Ghoda Padav in Shri Yamunotri Dham. Violators will be punishable under Section 188 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), as per the DM’s order. This decision was prompted by a joint report submitted by the Barkot’s Sub-District Magistrate, Deputy Superintendent of Police, and Uttarkashi Additional Chief Officer of the District Panchayat. The report emphasized the need for crowd control to safeguard pilgrims, lives, and property.

The Char Dham Yatra, which includes sites like Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath, and Bedrinath, began on May 10 this year. Uttarakhand witnesses a peak in pilgrimage season during the summers, drawing thousands of devotees to these sacred destinations.

BJP on Monday issued a show cause notice to former Union Minister Jayant Sinha for not participating in the Lok Sabha elections after Manish Jaiswal was declared candidate from the Hazaribagh Lok Sabha seat and thereby maligning the party’s image. Jayant Sinha is the son of former union finance minister Yashwant Sinha and is the sitting MP of Hazaribag. Sinha did not participate in elections in Hazaribag Lok Sabha seat.

Sinha has been accused of not paying attention to his organizational duties and did not participate in the election campaigning since Jaiswal’s candidacy was announced. His absence during elections in Hazaribag Lok Sabha seat on Monday has further intensified the situation in BJP. The notice issued on Monday requires Sinha to provide an explanation within 2 days, as per instructions from state BJP president and former Jharkhand chief minister Babulal Marandi. Sahu said further actions will depend on Sinha’s response.

Attempts were made to reach him for his comments but Sinha remained unavailable and did not respond to calls and messages. Earlier Sinha took to X and expressed his desire to shift his focus towards combating global climatic change and highlighting his attention to continue working with economic and governance issues.

In the past Hazaribag has been represented by both Yashwant Sinha and his son Jayant Sinha and holds substantial political weight in Jharkhand. In the 2019 general elections Jayant Sinha was victorious by a margin of 4.79 lakh votes and defeated Congress’s Gopal Sahu. Jaiswal whose nomination sparked controversy had earlier contested elections from the Mandu assembly seat on a JVM ticket.

 Earlier Jayant Sinha has served on India’s council of ministers from 2014 and 2019, and also as the minister of state for finance and minister of state of civil aviation. The BJP MP is also known for helping launch the UDAN regional connectivity scheme that increased the number of operational airports in India by 50% in 3 years.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday paid tributes to the former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi on his 33rd death anniversary. Taking  to social media X, formerly Twitter, PM Modi said, on his death anniversary, his tributes to our former PM Shri Rajiv Gandhi Ji.

Earlier in the day, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, and party MP Rahul Gandhi remembered the former prime minister at Delhi’s Veer Bhumi on his death anniversary. In the national capital, other Congress leader such as P Chidambaram and Sachin Pilot, also paid their tributes to the former prime minister.

Rahul Gandhi wrote a post in memory of his late father in which he referred to his father’s dreams as his own. Rahul also uploaded a picture of himself and his father from when they were younger, in which Rajiv Gandhi is seen keeping his hand on Rahul’s shoulders. Rahul stated in the post that his father’s dreams are his dreams, and his father’s aspirations are his responsibilities. His father’s memories, today and always, always remain in his heart, Rahul added.

On May 21, 1991, Rajiv Gandhi was killed by a suicide bomber from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) during an election rally in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu. At Veer Bhumi, which is situated on the Yamuna River’s banks, he was cremated.

India observes National Anti-Terrorism Day on May 21st of each year to pay tribute to the former Prime Minister.

He was campaigning for his political party, the Congress, in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu, when a lady from the Liberation of Tamil Tigers Eelam (LTTE) terrorist squad killed him in a suicide explosion in 1991. Following the death of his mother Indira Gandhi in 1984, Rajiv Gandhi assumed the role of India’s youngest prime minister. From 1984 to 1989, he served as the Prime Minister.