Registration for Gangotri, Yamunotri, Kedarnath stopped temporarily: Officials

Registration of pilgrims for Gangotri, Yamunotri, and Kedarnath has been stopped temporarily as the daily quota of pilgrims for the famed temples is full till June 3, officials said on Thursday.

Dehradun District Magistrate R Rajesh Kumar said the decision to stop registration of devotees for these temples, for the time being, has been taken for their convenience as it will help prevent chaos and confusion at the Himalayan shrines.

The decision was taken as the daily quota of pilgrims for these shrines according to government guidelines is full till June 3, SDRF officials at Rishikesh ISBT said. An announcement to this effect is being made at the ISBT here. Registration of pilgrims is now being done only for Badrinath. 

The Char Dham yatra was resumed on Wednesday morning as the weather improved with pilgrims waiting in Sonprayag, Gaurikund and Jankichatti allowed to proceed to the Himalayan temples.

The pilgrimage had to be halted temporarily for the second consecutive day on Tuesday due to snowfall and rain on the Char Dham routes.

The weather turned normal on Wednesday and pilgrims who had been asked to wait in Sonprayag, Gaurikund, and Jankichatti on their way to the temples for safety reasons on Tuesday were permitted to resume their onward journey, the Kedarnath-Badrinath temple committee said.

The helicopter services to Kedarnath which had also been suspended due to bad weather have also been resumed, it said.

A record 9,69,610 pilgrims have visited Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri, and Yamunotri in less than one month since the start of the yatra on May 3. (With inputs from PTI)