President visits Badri-Kedarnath, prays for country's prosperity

Accompanied by Governor K K Paul and Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat, the president along with his wife Savita and other family members arrived at Kedarnath in a MI17 at around 8 AM.

After getting down at the helipad located behind the high altitude temple amid overcast conditions, the president and his family members took a round of the newly built Kedarpuri in all terrain vehicles to have a look at the reconstruction work.

The shrine had witnessed massive devastation in the June 2013 flash floods.

After taking a round of Kedarpuri, Kovind and his family worshipped Baba Kedarnath, one of the 12 'jyotirlingas' in the country. He spent around 20 minutes inside the sanctum sanctorum of the famed temple performing 'rudrabhishek' of Lord Shiva.

Traditional delicacies of Uttarakhand were offered to the president as 'prasad', deputy chief executive officer of the temple committee Anil Sharma said.

The president then left for Gauchar where he and his family took rest for a while at the ITBP guest house before setting out for Badrinath.

Kovind spent around twenty minutes at Badrinath to offer prayers before leaving for the Jollygrant airport.

The president's visit was smooth even as many parts of Uttarakhand received rain today.

Before embarking on his journey to the Himalayan shrines, the president and his wife planted sandalwood saplings at the Raj Bhawan here.

The president and his family began their two-day visit to the state yesterday with a visit to the 'Har Ki Pairi' in Haridwar.

It was the Kovind's first visit to Uttarakhand after assuming office. Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat later thanked the President for visiting the famous Himalayan shrines despite bad weather saying it will go a long way in sending the message of a safe 'Chardham Yatra' to the outside world.