20-05-2025
Adi Kailash yatra halted as landslide blocks Dharchula-Lipulekh road
Pithoragarh: The
Adi Kailash Yatra
, which began on May 2, has been put on halt after a massive landslide on Tuesday night blocked the
Dharchula-Lipulekh road
at Alagad, about 7km from Dharchula.
A Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) personnel, Mahajan Mohan Ravindra, was injured in the incident after boulders fell on a barrack in the area.
Four personnel were sleeping inside the barrack when the landslide struck.
Ravindra was admitted to a hospital in Dharchula, said Juber Ansari, assistant commandant, SSB.
The landslide was triggered by heavy rainfall in the region on Monday. Ongoing road construction on the stretch is also believed to have destabilised the hillside, making the area more vulnerable.
All vehicular movement to the three higher Himalayan valleys -- Darma, Chaudas, and Vyas -- has been cut off due to the blockage, said Bhupendra Singh Mahar, district disaster management officer, Pithoragarh.
"Hundreds of vehicles have been stuck on the road, many of them carrying pilgrims for the Adi Kailash yatra," Mahar said. The administration has issued an advisory to tour operators not to resume the yatra from Dharchula until the route is cleared.
The SSB has also closed the pedestrian suspension bridge between India and Nepal (Alagad–Badugaon) as a precautionary measure since construction work is underway uphill from the bridge and there is a risk of falling boulders, said Ansari. He added that work to clear the road is underway and it is expected to be reopened by Wednesday.
