Rudraprayag | The portals of the revered Kedarnath Temple in the Garhwal Himalayas of Uttarakhand will reopen for devotees on April 22 after remaining closed for nearly six months during winter, a temple committee official said on Sunday.

Harish Gaur, Public Relations Officer of the Shri Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee, said the auspicious date and time for reopening the shrine were decided on the occasion of Mahashivratri on Sunday at the winter seat of Lord Kedarnath -- the Omkareshwar Temple.

Following the rituals and special prayers, religious scholars and priests calculated the muhurat (auspicious timing) through panchang or Hindu calendar readings. The temple, one of the 12 Jyotirlingas, will be opened at 8 am on April 22.

The ceremony at Omkareshwar Temple, decorated with around nine and a half quintals of flowers, was attended by Kedarnath Temple's chief priest Rawal Bhimashankar Ling, Kedarnath MLA Asha Nautiyal, Temple Committee chairman Hemant Dwivedi, other officials, religious leaders, and hundreds of devotees.

Devotees offered prayers, raised chants of "Jai Baba Kedar" and partook of prasad at community feasts organised by donors.

With the announcement of Kedarnath Temple's reopening date, the schedule for the Char Dham yatra in the Garhwal Himalayas has also been finalised. The doors of Badrinath Dham will reopen on April 23, while Gangotri Dham and Yamunotri Dham will reopen on April 19, coinciding with Akshaya Tritiya.