E-Paper
Pre-registration made mandatory for Manimahesh Yatra
The annual Manimahesh Kailash Yatra will take place from September 7, coinciding with festival of Janmashtami to September 23 this year
The Bharmour administration has made pre-registration mandatory for the annual Manimahesh Kailash Yatra from this year.
After registration, a QR-Code based acknowledgement will be generated that the pilgrims must carry with them during the Yatra — commences on September 7, coinciding with festival of Janmashtami, the birth of Lord Krishna and will end on September 23, on the occasion of Radhastami.
The pilgrims can register for the pilgrimage on the Chamba administration’s website by paying a nominal fee of ₹20.
The Bharmour administration is also considering offline registration at Harsar base camp and Kugti village.
A maximum of five people are allowed to register on one application. Pilgrims will have to undergo a medical fitness test Harsar and if found unfit will be sent back.
Bharmour additional district magistrate (ADM) Naveen Tanwar said the registration system will facilitate the administration in getting the exact number of pilgrims undertaking the Yatra and carrying out rescue operations in case of natural calamity or untoward incident.
The ADM, who also presided over a meeting to review the preparation for the Yatra on Friday, fixed the prices for food items after taking feedback from the stakeholders. It will be mandatory for the shopkeepers to display the price list at their shops.
The prices for mule and horse services will be fixed after a meeting with the officers of the animal husbandry department on Saturday.
Tanwar said it must be ensured that no overloading is done by the taxi operator and the vehicles must have a sticker of the taxi union. He also directed that the vehicles would be parked at marked places and urged the union representatives to coordinate with local police to keep the traffic smooth.
Tanwar said a team will also be constituted for monitoring of cleanliness and management of temporary toilets being set up on the track Manimahesh Trek.
Every year lakhs of pilgrims trek about 14-km to the oval-shaped lake, located at a height of 13,500 ft above the sea level in Budhil valley in Pir-Panjal Mountain Range, to catch a glimpse of Mount Manimahesh Kailash, believed to be the abode of Lord Shiva, and take holy dip in the lake. The main Yatra route crosses through Harsar near Bharmour while another goes through Kugti village.
