India, April 30 -- The Char Dham Yatra began on Wednesday with the opening of the doors to the Gangotri and Yamunotri temples in Uttarakhand for devotees coinciding with Akshay Tritiya, officials said on Tuesday.

Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami was present at the Gangotri shrine, where he offered prayers.

"I congratulate everyone on this auspicious occasion of Akshaya Tritiya. With the opening of the portals of Yamunotri and Gangotri, the Char Dham Yatra has formally begun," said Dhami.

According to the tourism department, over 5,000 pilgrims visited Yamunotri and Gangotri on the opening day. A total of 22,52,212 pilgrims have registered for the yatra so far-22,30,799 through online modes and 21,553 offline-till 5pm on T...