After the death of 11 Chardham-bound pilgrims in Uttarakhand in the last five days the Uttarakhand government has decided to conduct mandatory medical examination of the devotees above 50 years of age.

The Chardham Yatra commenced here with the opening of the Kedarnath shrine.

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“According to our information, 11 people have died in the Chardham Pilgrimage in the last five days. The deaths have taken place in different places. Now, those coming for the Chardham pilgrimage will have to undergo health screening and provide all the details of their health conditions and their health history” said Garhwal Commissioner and secretary to Chief Minister Vinay Shankar Pandey.

“Uttarakhand government wants Chardham bound pilgrims not to hide their health history with the doctors and other medical staff,” said the Garhwal Commissioner. Pandey added that the “pilgrims’ safety is a top priority. All efforts will be made to send the devotees back to their homes safely. Pilgrims are also needed to not to hide their health status and history.”

The Garhwal commissioner informed that excess flow of pilgrims in Gangotri, Yamunotri, Badrinath and Kedarnath mainly as a large number of them are visiting earlier than their scheduled date. “This has created huge crowds on the roads and at the shrines rendering entire pilgrimage a big challenge for the government. Now, a decision has been taken not to allow any vehicle on Chardham routes unless the pilgrims traveling in it have registration for the same day. RTOs and district administration teams will also conduct strict checking for the same-day registration of the pilgrims” said Pandey.

Besides, the Dhami government has decided to hold mandatory medical checkups for all pilgrims above 50 years. According to state health officials, most of the pilgrims who developed health issues on the higher hills have tried to conceal there’s health history and failed to undergo proper health checkups despite adequate guidelines issued by the state government.

“Health checkups for all the pilgrims above 50 years will be mandatory. Till last year, it was only for those above 55 years. Crowd management at the shrines and on Chardham routes has thrown a big challenge to the state machinery but we have deployed a sufficient number of doctors and medical staff to take care of the pilgrims. Pilgrims must get their fitness in order before taking journey to the higher hills, especially the elderly pilgrims” said state health secretary Dr R Rajesh Kumar.

It’s significant to note that deaths of the devotees during the Chardham pilgrimage have been a recurring factor every season despite all the efforts of the government to salvage the situation. More than 200 pilgrims have lost their lives in the 2023 Chardham season owing mainly to extreme weather conditions and cardiac arrests.