Due to the forecast of heavy rains by the Meteorological Department, the Kedarnath Yatra has been stopped for three days. Barriers have been put up by the police in the market. Also, the shuttle service from Sonprayag to Gaurikund has been banned. Despite this, pilgrims are still reaching Sonprayag. On Wednesday, the police had to use mild force to stop the pilgrims who were adamant on going to Kedarnath. During this, there was a lot of altercation between the pilgrims and the police personnel.
A crowd of pilgrims had gathered in Sonprayag since Wednesday morning. By 11 o’clock, more than 500 pilgrims had gathered in the market, who were saying in one voice that they wanted to go to Kedarnath. During this, the pilgrims were stopped by the police by putting up barriers in the market and they were repeatedly being explained that due to the forecast of heavy rains by the Meteorological Department, the Kedarnath Yatra has been postponed for three days. Therefore, all the pilgrims should stay at safe places. But, many pilgrims were not ready to listen to the police. The situation was such that some people tried to move ahead by breaking the barrier, on which the police had to use mild force.
Deputy Superintendent of Police Vikas Pundir said that keeping in mind the alert of heavy to very heavy rains for three days, passengers are being stopped at various places. For the safety of the passengers, they are being asked to stay at safe places till the weather becomes normal, despite this some people are forcibly trying to move ahead, who have been stopped. He said that the shuttle service from Sonprayag has also been stopped. During this time, challans have also been issued to three vehicle operators.
