Rudraprayag. A major accident occurred on the Kedarnath Yatra route on Sunday. A hill suddenly cracked near Chirbasa on the footpath from Gaurikund to Kedarnath. Due to this, a large amount of stones and debris came down. 3 pilgrims going on the Kedarnath Yatra died after being hit by debris and stones. 5 others are injured in this accident. The injured have been brought to Gaurikund and admitted to the hospital.
Uttarakhand: 3 pilgrims died and many were injured when debris and stones fell from the hill on the Kedarnath route near Chirvasa, 3 km from Gaurikund. Rescue teams reached the spot and treated the injured and launched a search operation. pic.twitter.com/fYtNHaRBMa
— IANS Hindi (@IANSKhabar) July 21, 2024
According to District Disaster Management Officer NS Rajwar, among the injured Kedarnath pilgrims, 2 are from Maharashtra and 3 others are local residents. Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami has expressed grief over the accident on the Kedarnath Yatra route. He has said that he is constantly in touch with the officers. CM Pushkar Singh Dhami has said that instructions have been issued to provide better medical facilities to the injured immediately.
The news of some pilgrims getting injured due to debris and heavy stones falling from the hill near the Kedarnath Yatra route is very sad. Relief and rescue work is going on at the spot, I am constantly in touch with the officials in this regard. Better treatment is being provided to the people injured in the accident immediately…
— Pushkar Singh Dhami (@pushkardhami) July 21, 2024
According to the information, on Sunday morning around 7.30 am, pilgrims were going from Gaurikund to Kedarnath via the hilly route. Then suddenly debris and stones started falling from the hill at Cheerbasa. The pilgrims ran to escape from them, but Kishore Arun Parate, a resident of Nagpur, Maharashtra, Sunil Mahadev Kale, a resident of Jalna, Maharashtra and Anurag Bisht, a resident of Rudraprayag, got caught in the grip. They died on the spot. Regarding Cheerbasa, the administration says that landslides keep happening here. Stones and debris also fall from the mountain during the rains. In 2023 also, a pilgrim going to Kedarnath died due to a landslide at Cheerbasa. The route from Gaurikund to Kedarnath temple is 16 km long. People have to go on foot from Gaurikund crossing the mountain and glacier. Vehicle can be reached only till Gaurikund. However, there is also a helicopter service to Kedarnath. Helicopters fly to Kedarnath from Phata.