By Our Staff Reporter
Dehradun, 8 May: In view of the bad weather in the Kedar Valley, registration for the Yatra to Kedarnath Dham has been halted till 15 May. While the local administration has allowed booking of chopper services to Kedarnath from 13 May, once again, it has been decided that the decision to halt or resume bookings for chopper services will be taken on day to day basis based on prevailing weather conditions and the forecast. Snow was predicted in higher reaches of the state while rain and hailstorm has been predicted for lower region over the next 24 hours and a yellow alert too has been issued.
It rained strongly in parts of Kumaon, too, on Sunday and today.
According to the weather department, it snowed in Kedar Valley, Badrinath and Gangotri, during the last 48 hours, while Yamunotri witnessed hailstorms during this period.
Joint Director, Tourism, Yogendra Gangwar today stated that the decision to halt registration for Kedarnath has been has been taken in view of the forecast of the Meteorological Department. There will be a ban on new registrations till 15 May but the passengers who have already registered will be able to travel. It may be recalled that till 13 May, 1.45 lakh Yatris have registered themselves for the Kedarnath Yatra. So far, over 5 lakh pilgrims have already visited the Char Dham this season. Of these, more than 1.75 lakh pilgrims have already visited Kedarnath shrine so far this year. Also, 1.18 lakh of pilgrims have visited Badrinath, 1.13 lakh, Gangotri, one lakh, the Yamunotri temple.
The booking of Heli tickets for Kedarnath Dham for May 13 onwards has resumed from today. The IRCTC portal was opened for online ticket booking at 12 noon. UCADA CEO C Ravi Shankar said that the booking of tickets for Kedarnath Heli Service is now being done on a daily basis.
To make the booking, first you have to register for the Kedarnath Yatra. After this, one will need to apply on the IRCTC website www.heliyatra.irctc.co.in to book the chopper tickets. Those interested will need to create a login ID. After which IT profile will open for booking. After selecting the heli operator company, the passenger will be required to fill the date of travel and time slot desired. Along with this, the number and information of passengers traveling will have to be given. After completing this process, OTP will come on the registered mobile number. After entering the OTP, the ticket will be booked by paying the ticket amount online.
