Chardham Yatra again sees pilgrim rush; Kedarnath, Badrinath set new records

Dehradun, Oct 9 (PTI) The Chardham Yatra, which was repeatedly disrupted due to incessant rain-induced disasters during the monsoon in Uttarakhand, has now picked up pace again despite snowfall and persistent bad weather, with the number of devotees thronging Kedarnath and Badrinath setting new records.

According to official figures, new records were set for the Kedarnath and Badrinath Yatra on Wednesday. While the number of pilgrims visiting Kedarnath this year crossed 16.56 lakh on Wednesday, the number of pilgrims visiting Badrinath surpassed 14.53 lakh.

According to the data, the previous record was set in 2024, when over 16.52 lakh pilgrims visited the Kedarnath temple for darshan during the entire pilgrimage period. Last year, 14.35 lakh pilgrims visited Badrinath.

A total of 19,731 pilgrims visited the four holy shrines (Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri, Yamunotri) and Hemkund Sahib in a single day till 7 pm on Wednesday. As many as 5,042 pilgrims visited the Badrinath temple, 5,614 Kedarnath temple, 6,217 Gangotri shrine and 2,360 Yamunotri shrine, while 498 pilgrims reached Hemkund Sahib.

The Chardham Yatra had seen a declining trend since the Dharali disaster on August 5 due to heavy rainfall, floods, and landslides. Several other disasters, including those in Dharali, Sayanachatti and Tharali within a span of 20 days, had virtually derailed the Chardham Yatra.

In the first week of September, the Yatra was also suspended for four days due to a bad weather warning. However, after September 5, the pilgrimage began to pick up, albeit slowly, and on September 10, approximately 8,000 pilgrims visited these shrines in a single day.

By August 4, the day before the Dharali disaster, 4.161 million pilgrims had completed the Chardham Yatra. Now, with the pilgrimage picking up pace again, the total number of pilgrims visiting the Chardham and Hemkund Sahib this season has risen to 4.7 million.

Experts say this figure could rise to 5 million in the coming days, as the Chardham Yatra still has a long way to go. The doors of Kedarnath and Yamunotri will close on October 23, while those of Gangotri will close on October 22, the day after Diwali, and those of Badrinath on November 25. PTI DPT AMJ AMJ