Kedarnath gets maximum pilgrim registrations

DEHRADUN: The response for the initial bookings and registration for Kedarnath yatra this year has been overwhelming.
With 4.43 lakh registrations, Kedarnath dham has nearly 74,000 more registrations than Badrinath. With around two weeks left for the yatra to begin, the registration for Kedarnath alone is expected to go beyond 7 lakh.
The Rudra cave, where PM Narendra Modi had meditated, is almost booked till June.Within a few hours of opening, the heli tickets to Kedarnath were booked till April 30, and now, the pilgrims are looking forward to booking through IRCTC that will start from May 1. The helicopter bookings were opened by the IRCTC on April 8 and within a few hours, the tickets from April 25 - the date when the Kedarnath yatra begins - to April 30 were booked.
Till Monday, Kedarnath had 4.43 registrations followed by 3.69 registrations for Badrinath, 2.1 lakh for Gangotri and 1.9 lakh for Yamunotri. Sudarshan Singh Khatri, regional manager of Garhwal Mandal Vikas Nigam (Rudraprayag), told TOI, "This year, the online booking for Rudra cave has started and it's almost booked till June. We can say that around 75% of the bookings are complete till June end."
Khatri pointed out that in addition to the Rudra cave, the GMVN is also giving meditation facilities at two more caves. "These two caves would be booked offline by the pilgrims visiting Kedarnath. While the price for Rudra cave is Rs 3,000 per night plus taxes, the rate for two other caves is Rs 1,600 plus taxes," he added.