Rain fury: Landslides block over 100 roads in U'khand, Kedar yatra halted
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Dehradun/Bageshwar: Landslides triggered by heavy and continuous rainfall across Uttarakhand have blocked roads at several places, disrupting normal life and severely affecting the Char Dham yatra.
As per data from the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC), 113 roads, including two national highways, were blocked on Thursday. Chamoli district reported the highest number of road blockades at 23, followed by Pithoragarh with 22.
The Kedarnath yatra was temporarily halted on Thursday morning after a landslide struck the crucial Sonprayag–Gaurikund route near Mankutia around 10 pm the previous night, stranding over 40 pilgrims returning from the shrine.
The State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) evacuated the pilgrims by opening a temporary passage through the debris.
Officials said the damaged stretch was not fit for movement of vehicles, prompting the authorities to divert incoming pilgrims to safer locations. Road restoration efforts are underway and by Thursday noon, pedestrian movement was partially restored.
"The Munkatiya Sliding Zone and the small parking area near Gaurikund are now open for pedestrian use," said a district police officer.
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Officials, however, cautioned that with more rainfall expected, the route remains hazardous and advised travellers to proceed with extreme caution. The regional meteorological centre reported moderate to heavy rainfall at several places across the state over the past 24 hours, keeping disaster response teams on alert.
The monsoon has also adversely impacted pilgrim footfall. While the Char Dham yatra witnessed a daily footfall of over 50,000 devotees just a few weeks ago, the numbers have now sharply declined to around 14,000 to 15,000 per day.
Kedarnath alone, which was recording over 20,000 visitors daily, saw the number drop to just over 4,000 in recent days. Since the start of this year's yatra on April 30 and till July 2, a total of 37.5 lakh pilgrims have visited the four shrines.
On July 1, a total of 17,000 pilgrims visited the Char Dham shrines, with 7,391 at Kedarnath and 5,275 at Badrinath. Brijesh Sati, general secretary of Uttarakhand Char Dham Teerth Purohit Mahapanchayat, said, "The arrival of the monsoon and the opening of schools are the two major reasons behind the decline in numbers."
Sati also cited weather-related damage to yatra routes as another key factor. "The yatra will again gain pace after Sept 15, and the chopper services will also resume around that time," he added.
Meanwhile, in Bageshwar, over 300 families remain at risk due to unstable terrain, especially in Kapkot tehsil, where villagers are demanding that they be evacuated. Diwan Singh, a resident of Kharbagad village, said, "The hill above is collapsing, and the river below is eroding the land.
Our village now under the shadow of disaster. We have already suffered significant damage in the recent rains and are left with nowhere to go.
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Harish Aithani, a local leader, said, "The terrain in this area is unstable. Most houses are now in the high-risk zone. The administration needs to take this seriously before it's too late."
Kapkot SDM Anil Singh Rawat acknowledged the vulnerability of the region. "While the situation is currently under control, this entire region is geologically sensitive.
The exact condition of Kharbagad will be known only after a detailed geoscientific study, to be conducted soon."
As per the Bageshwar District Disaster Management Plan 2024–25, a total of 357 families from 25 villages are marked for relocation—116 of these fall under the "extremely sensitive" category.
District disaster management officer Shikha Suyal said relocation efforts have begun at the tehsil level. "Currently, two families from Shama and three from Kathani are in the initial stages of the relocation process," she said.
Environmental activist Ramesh Krishak criticised the slow pace of intervention by the authorities. "Many affected families are still wandering from office to office for help. If your idea of development involves tearing down the mountains instead of preserving them, how can you protect the people who live here?" he asked.
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