As monsoon approaches, the hills of Uttarakhand are already witnessing heavy disruption. A landslide near Junglechatti on the Kedarnath pedestrian route Wednesday morning claimed the lives of two palanquin workers—18-year-old Nitin Kumar and Chandrashekhar, both from Doda, Jammu & Kashmir. They were hit by boulders dislodged from a mountainside. Three others, including two workers and a pilgrim from Bhavnagar, Gujarat, were injured and are being treated at a hospital in Gaurikund.
This comes just days after a similar incident at the same location, where debris killed one person and injured three others. In the last three years, landslides on the Kedarnath route have claimed 26 lives, with 36 people still missing.
Meanwhile, in Kumaon region, landslides and overflowing streams have blocked the Adi Kailash and Purnagiri pilgrimage routes. Over 2,000 pilgrims are stranded in Pithoragarh and Champawat districts. A taxi was swept away by the flooded Batnagad stream, but the passengers managed to escape unhurt.
On the Adi Kailash route, more than 100 pilgrims were stuck for over 14 hours across 24 vehicles due to road blockages from landslides. Authorities are working to clear the routes and provide relief to the stranded pilgrims.
