With a significant influx of pilgrims visiting the Kedarnath Temple in Uttarakhand, a video depicting chaos near the Sitapur area has gone viral on the Internet. Due to the overwhelming crowd, offline registration for the Char Dham Yatra has been suspended until May 31.
The viral video captures over a thousand pilgrims trapped in heavy traffic in the Sitapur area, with most of them on foot. The footage shows vans stuck in a narrow lane, and a voice can be heard saying, “If you want to come to Kedarnath, please watch this video. This is just Sitapur, 40 km from Kedarnath. The area is overcrowded, and the management isn’t taking any steps to disperse the crowd.”
An X handle @IndianTechGuide shared the video, writing, “This situation is not good in Kedarnath. Stay safe, and plan accordingly.” The video has garnered over 269,000 views, sparking concerns about the pilgrims’ safety. One user reacted, “A tragedy waiting to happen,” while another commented, “Time to set limits on visitors based on the load capacity, else disaster can strike.”
According to the Uttarakhand government’s official statement, two Yatra Magistrates, Ashok Kumar Pandey and Pankaj Kumar Upadhyay, have been deployed to manage the crowds at the Badrinath and Kedarnath temples respectively from May 26 to June 6, as reported by ANI. They are tasked with ensuring the smooth conduct of the Yatra.
