Record number of pilgrims visited ‘Adi Kailash’
Record number of pilgrims visited ‘Adi Kailash’
B.D. Kasniyal
Pithoragarh, Oct 18
‘Adi Kailash yatra’, to the Holi place of Lord Shiva, situated in high Himalayan region of Vyans valley of Dharchula sub-division of Pithoragarh district, has this year broken last year’s record off pilgrims visiting the place. The yatra witnessed visit of a total ( till date, October 18) 31187 pilgrims crossing last year’s record of total 29352 pilgrims, according to Jitendra Verma, Nodal officer for yatra and Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM), Dharchula.
“The Yatra, that got boost after the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in October 2023, witnessed visit of 10025 pilgrims immediately after the PM’s visit in 2023 and reached a record breaking 29352 numbers in 2024 and crossed the 30,000 pilgrims this year,” said the SDM
Before visit of the Prime Minister Modi in 2023, number of pilgrims to this holy place never exceeded 2500 marks as it was at 1757 in 2022, just year before the PM’s visit in 2023.
“Despite the yatra witnessed slight disturbance due to landslides on the road from Dharchula base camp to Jolingkong during monsoon months, the enthusiasm of pilgrims continued,” said the SDM.
“We hope more pilgrims will visit the shrine and peak in coming days as the second phase of yatra will continue till October 31, this year depending on weather conditions. ” said the SDM.
The ‘Adi Kailash yatra’ began simultaneously with ‘Kailash Mansarowar Yatra’ in 1981 as some pilgrims willed to visit holy Shaivite place at a lesser cost. “We used to cater to over 10000 pilgrims of ‘Kailash Mansarowar’ while an average of 2000 pilgrims used to visit ‘Adi Kailash’ before 2023,” said Dinesh Gururani, a retired Kumoan Mandal Vikas Nigam (KMVN) employee, who managed the ‘Kailash Mansarovar yatra’ after 1985.
