Uttarakhand: After Char Dham, Haridwar also bans reel making at religious places to maintain the decorum  

Haridwar: After summer vacation was announced in schools and colleges, a large number of pilgrims have started flocking to Uttarakhand to visit Char Dham shrines and other religious sites. Since Haridwar and Rishikesh are the entry points of Char Dham yatra in the state, these places are also witnessing a huge crowd these days. To maintain the sanctity of these places, reel making has been banned by religious institutions in Haridwar.

Shri Ganga Sabha has raised the demand

The administration at religious sites have been facing troubles in recent times due to the increasing craze of reel making. Shri Ganga Sabha, an organization which sees the management of Brahma Kund area on Har-ki-Pauri, raised objection on reel making in the month of May and demanded a complete ban on reel making at religious places. Nitin Gautam, president, Shri Ganga Sabha, said, “There have been many instances when people violated the sanctity of religious sites and tried to make obscene videos to post on social media. In view of this growing tendency, we had demanded a blanket ban on reel making.”

Religious akharas also put a ban on reel making

Niranjani akhara which looks after the management of Mansa Devi temple in Haridwar also put a check on reel making inside the temple premises. The president of Mansa devi trust and Akhil Bhartiya Akhara Parishad, Mahant Ravindra Puri Maharaj has also banned making reels in the temple premises. In a statement issued on Monday, Mahant Ravindra Puri said that if any attempt is made to create chaos in the temple premises due to reel making, then action will be taken against the miscreants.

Reel makers hamper the darshan process in temples

The holy city Haridwar is jam packed with a huge inflow of tourists and pilgrims these days. Not only the roads but hotels, Dharamshalas, homestays and other tourist accommodation are also completely packed. All the revered temples in Haridwar, like Shakti Peeth Mansa Devi, Chandi Devi, Dakshin Kali and Daksh Prajapati temple in Kankhal, are witnessing huge crowds of devotees. According to temple authorities, the youngsters filming reels at the temples has become a contentious issue, causing disruptions and impacting the sanctity of these revered sites. A temple priest at Chandi Devi said, “Most of the youngsters create disorder focusing only on reel making which annoys other devotees who face difficulty during darshan.”

A ban on reel making in all the four Char Dham shrines

Last week, on 16 May, the Uttarakhand government prohibited the creation of reels and videos within a 50-meter radius of the four Char Dham temples—Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath, and Badrinath. This decision aims to uphold the sanctity of these holy places and prevent disturbances caused by excessive filming and photography. Offenders who violate the prohibition may face charges for creating disturbances at religious sites under the Uttarakhand Police Act, 2007.