A.P. pilgrims reach Haridwar safely

They faced hardship due to heavy snowfall

The 110 pilgrims who went to Badrinath in two batches faced hardship on Tuesday night because of the heavy snowfall. The team of 39 members including Srikakulam ZP chairperson Chowdary Dhanalakshmi, ZPTC members and officials who went to study the MGNREGA work in Uttarakahand, were stranded near Sitapur. The other team, which went separately, was held up on the road near Badrinath due to the traffic jam caused by heavy snowfall.

All could reach the nearest places including Haridwar on Wednesday afternoon with the improvement in weather condition, according to TDP parliamentary party office in-charge Naupada Satyanarayana. Ms. Dhanalakshmi and others were scheduled to reach New Delhi from Haridwar where weather was clear.

“On the suggestion from Minister for Transport K. Atchannaidu and Srikakulam MP K. Rammohan Naidu, we talked to the officials concerned and ensured road clearance for the movement of their vehicles. After travelling nearly 315 km, Ms. Dhanalakshmi and her team reached Haridwar from Sitapur,” he told

The Hindu . The relatives of the pilgrims heaved a sigh of relief over the news of safety.

Pilgrims safe, says MLA

Special Correspondent from Visakhapatnam reports:

Pendurthi MLA Bandaru Satyanarayana Murthy said 12 persons from Parawada and 10 from Vepagunta in Visakhapatnam district, who were stranded on the way to the Kedarnath shrine in Uttarakhand, were reportedly safe and 11 members from Visakhapatnam were already on their way back. He appealed to the family members not to panic and the State government was taking steps to bring them back safely. A desk had been opened at the Andhra Bhavan in New Delhi. The MLA said the pilgrims from Visakhapatnam had started for the yatra last week and were struck near Joshimath.

A. Ramakrishna, who had gone to Kedarnath from Srikakulam, returned to a safe place on Tuesday.