CM Dhami offers prayers at ancestral temple in Pithoragarh
Synopsis
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami visited his ancestral village Hadkhola in Pithoragarh on 25 October 2026, offering prayers at the Shri Hari Chand Devta Temple and meeting local residents to enquire about their welfare.
Key Takeaways
CM Pushkar Singh Dhami visited his ancestral village Hadkhola in Pithoragarh district on 25 October 2026 .
He offered ritual prayers at the Shri Hari Chand Devta Temple , following traditional rites.
He prayed for the happiness, prosperity, good health, and auspicious life of all Uttarakhand residents.
He held informal meetings with local villagers to personally enquire about their well-being.
The visit reflects Uttarakhand's distinct Himalayan tradition of gram devta worship tied to ancestral villages.
Rooted in the hills of Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami returned to where he began — his ancestral village of Hadkhola — to offer prayers at the Shri Hari Chand Devta Temple on Sunday, 25 October 2026, seeking blessings for the well-being of every resident of the state.
Sharing the visit on X, CM Dhami wrote that he performed puja-archana (ritual worship) at the temple 'as per proper rites and traditions,' and prayed for the 'happiness, prosperity, good health, and auspicious life' of all people of Uttarakhand. He also met residents of the village, personally enquiring after their welfare.
A homecoming to Hadkhola's village deity
The Shri Hari Chand Devta Temple in Hadkhola is a local shrine tied to the Himalayan tradition of worshipping gram devtas — village deities considered the protectors of ancestral land and lineage. Such temples are deeply woven into the social and spiritual fabric of Uttarakhand's hill communities, where worship is conducted with region-specific rituals passed down through generations.
For Dhami, who assumed office as Chief Minister in 2021, the visit carries both personal and symbolic weight. Returning to one's ancestral village temple — especially during festival season — is a recognised cultural observance among Uttarakhand's leaders, reinforcing ties to local identity and heritage.
A tradition that connects leaders to the land
Indian chief ministers routinely make such visits to ancestral shrines, but in Uttarakhand the practice carries a particular resonance. The state's Himalayan geography means that devta traditions — local deity worship distinct from mainstream pan-Indian religious sites — remain vivid and community-defining. A sitting chief minister participating in these rites sends a clear signal of continuity with the region's living culture.
The informal meetings with local villagers during the visit also reflect a ground-level outreach that supplements formal governance — a direct, unhurried check-in with constituents far from Dehradun's corridors of power.
For the people of Pithoragarh, the chief minister's presence at a village shrine is less about politics and more about belonging. That quiet distinction may be the whole point.
Point of View
Such visible homecomings to remote hill villages help bridge the perennial gap between a hill-state chief minister's administrative base in Dehradun and the lived realities of border districts like Pithoragarh. It is soft outreach with a long cultural memory behind it.
NationPress
25 Oct 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Pushkar Singh Dhami's ancestral village?
CM Pushkar Singh Dhami's ancestral village is Hadkhola , located in Pithoragarh district , Uttarakhand.
What is the Shri Hari Chand Devta Temple?
The Shri Hari Chand Devta Temple in Hadkhola is a local village shrine dedicated to the deity Hari Chand Devta, part of Uttarakhand's Himalayan tradition of worshipping ancestral gram devtas or village protector deities.
Why did CM Dhami visit Hadkhola in October 2026?
CM Dhami visited his ancestral village Hadkhola to perform ritual worship at the Shri Hari Chand Devta Temple and to personally meet local residents and enquire about their welfare.
What did CM Dhami pray for at the temple?
He prayed for the happiness, prosperity, good health, and auspicious life of all residents of Uttarakhand.
When did Pushkar Singh Dhami become Chief Minister of Uttarakhand?
Pushkar Singh Dhami assumed office as Chief Minister of Uttarakhand in 2021 and leads the state's BJP government.
