Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered prayers at the Kedarnath temple and performed ‘aarti’ at the shrine early Friday. He then unveiled the statue of Adi Guru Shankaracharya, the 8th-century seer who had attained Moksha at Kedarnath.

The unveiling of the 12-feet statue of Adi Guru Shankaracharya was streamed live at the 12 jyotirlingas, four Shankaracharya mutts (monasteries), his birthplace and several prominent temples across the country. The samadhi of Shankaracharya was damaged in the 2013 deluge.

During his visit, PM Modi will also lay the foundation stone of Kedarpuri reconstruction projects worth over Rs 400 crore later in the day.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived at Dehradun airport on Friday morning. He was received by Uttarakhand Governor Lt Gen Gurmit Singh (Retd) and CM Pushkar Singh Dhami.

This is not PM Modi’s first visit to the Himalayan temple. He had offered prayers at the Kedarnath temple several times in the past and Friday’s visit to the temple will be his fifth as prime minister. This visit by PM Modi is significant as it was his initiative to rebuild Kedarnath after the 2013 tragedy.

Ahead of PM Modi’s visit, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, along with his Cabinet colleagues, reviewed preparations at the temple. He said all arrangements were in place and Kedarpuri is all decked up to welcome PM Modi.

“The Prime Minister’s vision is to develop Devbhoomi as the world’s spiritual and cultural capital where people from across the globe come for peace,” Pushkar Singh Dhami was quoted by news agency PTI as saying.

Redevelopment of Kedarnath on such a large scale is a step towards implementing that vision, Pushkar Singh Dhami said.

“It is a proud moment for us. The prime minister has done things in Kedarnath which no one even thought of doing for hundreds of years,” Pushkar Singh Dhami said, adding PM Modi’s faith in Baba Kedar is absolute.