DEHRADUN: The second phase of the renowned Adi Kailash pilgrimage in Uttarakhand’s Pithoragarh district has been deferred until September 20 after persistent bad weather and road closures disrupted access to the high-altitude shrine, a district administration spokesperson said.
The journey was scheduled to resume on Tuesday.
Dharchula Sub-Divisional Magistrate Ashish Joshi told TNIE that Inner Line Permits for pilgrims travelling to Adi Kailash would now be issued from September 20, subject to conditions on the ground.
“That remains a tentative date,” Joshi said.
“Permits for the second phase will be issued only if the weather improves and the route is found safe for travel.”
The postponement follows fresh damage to the strategically important Dharchula-Gunji road. The Bailey bridge near Kulagarh was washed away for the second time in a fortnight, cutting the principal approach to the upper Himalayan valleys.
“The Border Roads Organisation has begun rebuilding the bridge, while the Army has prepared an alternative route to maintain access to the high-altitude valleys,” Joshi said.
“We will restart the pilgrimage only after receiving a clear indication that both weather and transport conditions are safe.”
An Inner Line Permit, or ILP, is an official travel document allowing Indian citizens to enter or stay for a limited period in designated protected and restricted areas.
The permit requirement applies because the pilgrimage route passes through a sensitive frontier belt close to the India-China border.
The delay comes after a record turnout in the first phase. Since the yatra began on May 1, as many as 52,441 pilgrims visited Adi Kailash and Om Parvat within two months, according to official figures.
Administrators said the sharp rise in footfall had also increased the need for careful traffic management and weather-linked safety checks.
The Adi Kailash pilgrimage in Pithoragarh began in 1981, alongside arrangements for the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra. It gained far wider public attention after Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the area on October 12, 2023.
Adi Kailash, located within Indian territory, is revered as a sacred Himalayan site and draws devotees as well as trekkers.
Unlike Adi Kailash, the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra takes pilgrims to Mount Kailash and Lake Mansarovar in China’s Tibet Autonomous Region. The sites are sacred to followers of Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and the Bon tradition.
The Ministry of External Affairs says that pilgrimage is conducted under bilateral arrangements between New Delhi and Beijing and requires coordination with Chinese authorities.
Officials regard the journey as especially demanding because of its altitude, difficult terrain and extreme weather, and require medical screening, border clearances, transport planning and emergency support during the pilgrimage season.
