PM Modi expresses grief over Udhampur bus accident, announces ex gratia

IANS | April 20, 2026 12:53 PM

New Delhi, April 20 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday expressed deep sorrow over the loss of lives in a bus accident in Udhampur, Jammu and Kashmir. He also announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF) for the next of kin of each deceased.

Char Dham Yatra 2026: Why pilgrimage begins from Yamunotri

IANS | April 20, 2026 11:32 AM

New Delhi, April 20 (IANS) The Char Dham Yatra, one of Hinduism’s most revered pilgrimages, continues to draw thousands of devotees each year to the Himalayan shrines of Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath, and Badrinath. A distinctive aspect of this spiritual journey is that it always begins from Yamunotri, a sequence rooted in both religious tradition and geographical logic.