Update on the Uttarakhand disaster: The Kedarnath Temple in Uttarakhand was "partially destroyed" and suffered serious damages in the recent floods, but government would make all efforts to restore it to its "original glory", Minister of Culture Chandresh Kumari Katoch today said.

A team of ASI officials and experts was sent to Uttarakhand to visit the temple and assess the damage. However, the chopper carrying the team could not land due to bad weather, she said.

"After the natural calamity in Uttarakhand, the Kedarnath Temple was partially destroyed. We had sent a team to assess the damage and how we could restore it... Unfortunately, due to bad weather they could not reach the site," Katoch said.

The minister maintained that the team will be sent as soon as the weather clears. Rescue and rehabilitation as well as construction of roads are the priority at the moment, she said. "The team will have to assess the damages and what would be the expenditure to restore it. We want to start work as soon as we get the clearance from the state government," she said. She maintained that the temple has suffered a "lot of damage".

The Uttarakhand government has meanwhile told the Supreme Court that rescue operations in the state were over.