Devasthanam Board Row: High-level Committee Submits Final Report To Uttarakhand CM

A high-level committee set up by the Uttarakhand government to look into the Uttarakhand Char Dham Devasthanam Management Act, 2019 submitted its final report to Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami in Rishikesh on Sunday.

The report was submitted by committee president Manohar Kant Dhyani.

Priests of the Chardham -- Kedarnath, Badrinath, Gangotri and Yamunotri -- have long been demanding the dissolution of the Devasthanam Board, which they see as an encroachment upon their rights.

Constituted during the chief ministership of Trivendra Singh Rawat, the board is mandated to run the affairs of 51 temples in Uttarakhand, including the Chardham.

Soon after taking over, former chief minister Tirath Singh Rawat announced that the temples will be removed from the board's control. But he had to step down before he could keep his word.

State Assembly Speaker Premchand Aggarwal and cabinet ministers Subodh Uniyal and Satpal Maharaj were present when Dhyani submitted the panel's final report to the chief minister.

Chief Minister Dhami said a decision on the matter will be taken after examining the committee's report. The recommendations of the committee were not made public immediately.

The committee had submitted its interim report to the state government on October 25.