Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Modi thanks election commission for giving permission for temple visit

AFTER spending the night in a cave near Uttarakhand's Kedarnath temple, prime minister Narendra Modi Sunday (19) thanked the Election Commission for granting him permission for the visit, saying he remained entirely cut-off from the outside world and got two days of "rest".

Modi reached Kedarnath on Saturday and after offering prayers to Lord Shiva at the shrine went inside the cave to meditate at 02.00 pm IST wearing a saffron colour shawl.


He came out at 07.00 am IST Sunday and then left for Badrinath, another important Hindu shrine, where he ended his two-day visit to the state.

Dressed in a kurta-pyjama with a shawl wrapped around him, the prime minister walked down from the cave on a hill to the Kedarnath temple with the help of a cane.

"I did not ask for anything. I don't believe in asking because God only wants us to give...all I want is 'Baba' Kedarnath bestows his blessings not just upon India but entire mankind," he told reporters outside the Himalayan shrine of Kedarnath after offering prayers.

He also thanked the Election Commission for allowing him to undertake the visit, saying he got two days of "rest" there.

The EC had given its nod to Modi's visit while "reminding" the prime minister's office that the model code of conduct is still in force.

Polling for the seventh and the last phase of the general election was held Sunday (19).

Modi said he remained totally cut off from the outside world as there was no communication link to the cave he stayed in for 24 hours and he kept looking at the shrine through a small window.

He said, "I am fortunate, that I am getting the opportunity to come to Kedarnath for many years."

This is Modi's fourth visit in the last two years to the temple, which is at a height of 11,755 feet near the Mandakini river.

Taking note of the redevelopment work at Kedarnath, which was devastated in a series of cloudbursts in 2013, Modi said there is a dedicated team deployed for it and that he too had taken stock of works through video-conferencing with authorities.

"The work at Kedarnath is now progressing at a proper pace. People, besides visiting Dubai and Singapore, should also visit Kedarnath and other places in India," he said.

The prime minister then boarded an Indian Air Force helicopter to Badrinath, another temple in Uttarakhand's "char dham" religious circuit, dedicated to Lord Vishnu.

Modi offered prayers at the innermost sanctum in Badrinath.

Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee chief Mohan Prasad Thapliyal said the prime minister offered prayers at the temple for around 20 minutes and was given a greeting card made on a "bhojpatra" (birch leaves) by the temple's priests.

He was also given a shawl by the residents of Mana village, he said.

The prime minister took a walk inside the temple complex and later, shook hands with the devotees and locals, Thapliyal said, adding that Modi also met pilgrims waiting near the shrine.

Members of the committee met the prime minister at the shrine's guest house and submitted a memorandum stressing upon the need to expand the temple's premises and improving telecommunication services at Badrinath.

Modi asked temple authorities to play an active role in providing better facilities to pilgrims visiting the shrine, Thapliyal said.

The prime minister reached Badrinath in an IAF helicopter, which landed at an army helipad near the shrine, and reached the temple by road, he said, adding that stringent security arrangements were in place.

The portals of the Kedarnath and Badrinath shrines reopened for devotees earlier this month after the winter break.

(PTI)

More For You

Covid inquiry begins probe into care home deaths

FILE PHOTO: A mother and daughter sit atop the Covid memorial wall on September 9, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images)

Covid inquiry begins probe into care home deaths

THE Covid inquiry has started examining how the pandemic affected care services for older and disabled people, with families describing the crisis as one of the worst failures of the pandemic.

Nearly 46,000 care home residents died with Covid in England and Wales between March 2020 and January 2022, with many deaths happening in the first weeks of the outbreak.

Keep ReadingShow less
Starmer and Glastonbury condemn anti-Israel chants by Bob Vylan

Keir Starmer speaks to members of the media during a visit to RAF Valley, on Anglesey in north-west Wales, on June 27, 2025. PAUL CURRIE/Pool via REUTERS

Starmer and Glastonbury condemn anti-Israel chants by Bob Vylan

PRIME MINISTER Keir Starmer and Glastonbury organisers said on Sunday (29) they were appalled by on-stage chanting against the Israeli military during a performance at the festival by Punk-rap duo Bob Vylan.

During their show on Saturday (28), the duo chanted "Death, death, to the IDF" in reference to the Israel Defense Forces, the formal name of the Israeli military.

Keep ReadingShow less
Pakistan floods

A flooded street near Station Road after heavy rainfall in Hyderabad, Pakistan, on June 27, 2025.

Getty

Pakistan reports 45 deaths from flash floods and rain in monsoon onset

AT LEAST 45 people have died in Pakistan over the past few days due to flash flooding and heavy rainfall since the beginning of the monsoon season, according to disaster management officials on Sunday.

The highest number of deaths was reported in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which borders Afghanistan. There, 21 people were killed, including 10 children.

Keep ReadingShow less
UK Weather Alert: June Heatwave to Hit 34°C, Breaking Records

The UK is bracing for potentially one of the hottest June days on record

iStock

UK set for one of the hottest June days with highs of 34°C

Key points

  • Temperatures may hit 34°C in Greater London and Bedfordshire
  • Amber alert in place across five regions due to health risks
  • Wimbledon’s opening day to be hottest on record
  • Risk of wildfires in London labelled “severe”
  • Scotland and Northern Ireland remain cooler

Hottest June day in years expected as second UK heatwave peaks

The UK is bracing for potentially one of the hottest June days on record, with temperatures expected to reach 34°C on Monday (30 June). The ongoing heatwave, now in its fourth day, is most intense across the South and East of England, particularly in Greater London and Bedfordshire.

Although there is a small chance of temperatures hitting 35°C, they are unlikely to surpass the all-time June record of 35.6°C set in 1976.

Keep ReadingShow less
Air India flight crash
Air India's Boeing 787-8 aircraft, operating flight AI-171 to London Gatwick, crashed into a medical hostel complex shortly after take-off from Ahmedabad on June 12.
Getty Images

Probing all angles in Air India crash, including sabotage: Minister

INDIA’s junior civil aviation minister said on Sunday that all possible angles, including sabotage, were being looked into as part of the investigation into the Air India crash.

All but one of the 242 people on board the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner were killed when it crashed in Ahmedabad on June 12. Authorities have identified 19 others who died on the ground. However, a police source told AFP after the crash that the death toll on the ground was 38.

Keep ReadingShow less