Bus taking pilgrims to Char Dham Yatra catches fire, no casualties

A private bus enroute Uttarakhand for the Char Dham Yatra suddenly caught fire in Madhya Pradesh on Friday and was completely gutted reported PTI The bus had left from Maharashtras Buldhana town carrying pilgrims for the yatraNo one was injured in the incident which took place in the afternoon as passengers quickly came out of the bus a police official saidAs per the PTI report a total of 30 passengers including eight children were onboard the illfated bus when it caught fire near Kolaras town in Shivpuri district SubDivisional Officer of Police SDOP Vijay Yadav saidAs soon as the travellers noticed smoke emanating in the bus they immediately came out a woman passenger saidLater the bus was engulfed in flames which were doused by a fire tender Yadav said He further added that an electrical shortcircuit appears to have been the cause of the blazeThe luggage of the passengers bound for Uttarakhand was damaged in the fire the official addedA total of 60 passengers in two private buses had left from Buldhana town on May 15 for the popular pilgrimage to four sacred Hindu sites located in the Himalayas he saidThe Char Dham Yatra is a pilgrimage circuit in India that covers four holy sites Yamunotri Gangotri Kedarnath and Badrinath These sites are located in the Himalayas of Uttarakhand state The pilgrimage is significant in Hinduism with each site holding its own religious and spiritual importanceDevotees from all across the country travel to the state to embark on the pilgrimage usually around April or MayWith inputs from PTIChar Dham Yatra 2024 Badrinath Temple opens for devotees amid chants and melodious tunesThe Shri Badrinath Dham in Uttarakhand opened its doors for devotees at 6 am on Sunday morning after a break of six months Amid melodious tunes by the Army Band and complete rituals vedic chants and slogans of Badri Vishal Lal Ki Jai the temple welcomed devotees as per an ANI reportThe shrine of Shri Badrinath Dham is located in Garhwal hill tracks in Chamoli district along the banks of Alaknanda River in the Uttarakhand state Thousands of devotees thronged the entry of Badrinath DhamThe Char Dham Yatra commenced in Uttarakhand on May 10 For the last two days all three Dhams including Kedarnath Gangotri and Yamunotri have been bustlingOn the first day a record number of more than 29000 pilgrims from India and abroad visited Kedarnath DhamWelcoming the pilgrims Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami presided over the inaugural puja at Shri Kedarnath Dham temple invoking prayers for the safe journey and spiritual fulfilment of all embarking on the Char Dham pilgrimage