Prime Minister Narendra Modi this morning unveiled the statue of Adi Shankaracharya at the premises of the Kedarnath Temple in Rudraprayag district of Uttarakhand.
The Samadhi of Adi Shankaracharya has been reconstructed after its destruction in the 2013 Uttarakhand floods.
"You all are witness to the inauguration of Adi Shankaracharya Samadhi here today. His devotees are present here in spirit. All maths and 'jyotirlingas' in the country are connected with us today," said PM Modi.
The Prime Minister credited Baba Kedar for reconstruction work carried out in Kedarpuri in sub-zero temperatures after devastating floods of 2013.
"After 2013 destruction, people used to think if Kedarnath could be redeveloped. But a voice within me always told me that Kedarnath will be redeveloped again," said the Prime Minister.
"No words to describe experience of sitting before Adi Guru Shankaracharya''s statue at his rebuilt samadhi," said PM Modi after unveiling the statue.
Speaking about the devastation caused by the floods, the Prime Minister said, "At the time, I was the Chief Minister of Gujarat but I could not stop myself and rushed here. I witnessed that destruction and pain."
"I feel fortunate enough that we successfully initiated these development projects in Kedarnath," PM Modi added.
He also said, "I was able to successfully initiate these development projects in Kedarnath due to my experience of handling earthquakes in Kutch in 2001."
Before the inauguration, PM Modi offered prayers and performed ''aarti'' at the ancient temple. He paid obeisance to Lord Shiva and undertook circumambulation of the Kedarnath shrine after offering prayers.
PM unveils statue of Adi Guru Shankaracharya
PM Modi also inaugurated several reconstruction projects worth thousands of crores at the Himalayan temple.
PM Modi was received at the Dehradun airport by Uttarakhand Governor Lt Gen Gurmit Singh (retd), Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and his cabinet colleagues Subodh Uniyal and Ganesh Joshi, besides Uttarakhand Assembly Speaker Premchand Aggarwal.
"We will all welcome Prime Minister Narendra Modi. PM Modi will reach here in the morning. He will do the Maha Rudra Abhishek and pray for the welfare of the nation. He will also unveil the statue of Adi Shankaracharya. The temple has been decorated with flowers," Bagish Ling, a priest of Kedarnath temple told news agency ANI ahead of the visit.
Saraswati Retaining Wall Aasthapath and Ghats, Mandakini Retaining Wall Aasthapath, Tirth Purohit Houses, and Garud Chatti bridge on river Mandakini are some of the projects to be inaugurated by PM Modi.
Located on the bank of Mandakini river, Kedarnath Temple is one of the four ancient pilgrimage sites referred to as ''Char Dham Yatra'' which also include Yamunotri, Gangotri and Badrinath.
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