‘Decked in gold’: Why Kedarnath temple got ITBP security

The outer walls of the famous Kedarnath temple located in Uttarakhand have recently been gold plated. And since gold worth crores of rupees is lying unattended during the winter months that can attract the attention of thieves, 30 personnel from the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) will remain in vigil around the temple now.
The high altitude temple decked in gold becomes almost empty during winter as permanent residents move to lower areas because of heavy snow.

The task is a challenging one for the guards as the temperature at Kedarnath, at a height of around 11,755 feet, can dip to minus 15 degrees Celsius. And there could be up to five to six feet of snow in the area.

As per reports, two ITBP personnel will guard each of the three doors of the shrine. One will be tasked with ensuring smooth communication with other teams in the precinct. On October 26 this year, a day before the temple closed, gold plating of the sanctum sanctorum was completed with around 40 kg of gold.

Uttarakhand is called a ‘Dev Bhoomi’. It has a number of temples dating back to thousands of years. The most famous among them are the temples located in the four locations of Badarinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri & Yamunotri, which are collectively referred as Char Dham. Pilgrims from all over India and abroad visit the shrines as Char Dham Yatra. The Char Dham yatra holds great importance and sanctity in Hindu religion.