Record 13 lakh bookings for Chardham Pilgrimage in eight days
The State Tourism Department called it a sign of record breaking flow of pilgrims to the four shrines as the pilgrimage season is scheduled to start on May 10.
The annual Char Dham pilgrimage season of Uttarakhand concluded on Wednesday with the portals of Badrinath temple closing for the winter break.
This year the religious tourism to Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri and Yamunotri witnessed an impressive 70 per cent growth from last year.
The Char Dham Yatra to famous Hindu shrines- Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri and Yamunatori- are considered the backbone of Uttarakhand economy.
This year over 13.59 Lakh devotees visited the four holy Hindu shrines in Uttarakhand Himalayas- compared to 7.96 Lakh visited last year.
This time 2.83 Lakh pilgrims visited Gangotri, 1.54 Lakh Yamunotri, Kedarnath 3.09 and Badrinath 6,12 Lakh. Last year Gangotri had attracted 1.60 Lakh, Yamunotri 1.22 Lakh, Badrinath 3.59 Lakh and Kedarnath 1.54 Lakh.
Uttarakashi Hotel Association’s president Ajay Puri says, “The seasons picked up the pace immediately after the portals of four Hindu shrines were thrown open for the pilgrims. After that it maintained the pace, so this year we have witnessed an impressive growth.”
Tourism in Kedarnath, which became the epi-centre of the 2013 disaster, is fast returning to normalcy.
The year the one dozen odd aviation companies played key role in making the tour of the visitors comfortable in Kedarnath.
Rather than undertaking the 22 km trek or opting for mule/palanquin, pilgrims opted for the air pilgrimage.
The growing popularity of choppers in Kedarnath has created panic among the locals. As Rakesh Goswami of Gaurikund says, “Now the tourist complete his/her pilgrimage in quick time due to the air service. They don’t stay in any halting place to Kedarnath, this tread has caused big loss to local hoteliers on Kedarnath route.”
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat attended the closing ceremony of the Badrinath shrine in district Chamoli on Wednesday.
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