Portals of Gangotri temple closed for winters

Uttarkashi: The portals of the Gangotri temple here were closed on Saturday for the winter season when it remains snowbound, an official of the temple committee said.

All temples located in the Garhwal Himalayas, also known as Char Dham, are closed during the winter.

Gangotri temple committee secretary Suresh Semwal said the gates of the temple located at a height of around 10,000 feet above sea level were closed amid rituals at 12.14 pm on the auspicious occasion of the Annakoot festival.

After the ceremonial closure of the temple gates amid chants of "Har Har Gange, Jai Ma Gange" by devotees and priests, the idol of Goddess Ganga left in a palanquin for Mukhba where she will be worshipped for the whole of winter, he said.

Gangotri is the first of the Char Dham temples to be closed. More than eight lakh devotees visited the temple this season.

The doors of Yamunotri and Kedarnath temples will be closed on Sunday while those of Badrinath will be shut on November 17.

These famous Himalayan temples are reopened in April-May each year with the onset of summer.