At Kedarnath, Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveils a statue of Adi Shankaracharya

On Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a statue of Adi Shankaracharya in the Rudraprayag area of Uttarakhand's Kedarnath Temple (November 5, 2021).

After being demolished in the Uttarakhand floods of 2013, the Adi Shankaracharya Samadhi was rebuilt.

The Prime Minister conducted 'aarti' at the ancient temple and offered prayers at the hill shrine minutes before the inauguration. After giving prayers, he paid reverence to Lord Shiva and performed a circumambulation of the Kedarnath shrine.

At the Dehradun airport, PM Modi was greeted by Uttarakhand Governor Lt Gen Gurmit Singh (Retd) and Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami.

PM Modi will also lay the foundation stone for major infrastructure projects totaling Rs 130 crores, including the Saraswati Retaining Wall Aasthapath and Ghats, Mandakini Retaining Wall Aasthapath, Tirth Purohit Houses, and Garud Chatti bridge across the Mandakini River.

During his visit to the temple, PM Modi will also lay the foundation stone for several projects in the hill state and address a public rally. His visit comes before of the state's 2022 Assembly elections.

This will be Prime Minister Narendra Modi's second visit to the shrine during his term; the last time he went to Kedarnath was in 2019.