Garh Mukteshwar, a tiny town in Hapur district of Uttar Pradesh, is expected to host lakhs of kanwar pilgrims if everything goes as scheduled by the Yogi Adityanth government. Notably, while Uttarakhand has cancelled the Kanwar Yatra in the wake of Covid-19 pandemic, Uttar Pradesh is still adamant on holding the holy yatra. Uttarakhand government’s decision has kept Haridwar, one of the most popular pilgrimage sites of the country, out of the bound for devotees, making Garh Mukteshwar the only choice left for devotees.
The UP government has attracted much flake for its decision to hold Kanwar yatra as the second wave of novel coronavirus hasn’t completely slowed down. The UP government had even requested Uttarakhand to let the pilgrims pass en route for Haridwar to collect water of holy ganga. The Uttarakhand government had denied the permission, citing safety concern amid the pandemic.
After thoroughly examining several alternatives, the UP government has zeroed down to the ancient town of Garh Mukteshwar where devotees visit throughout the year.
Divisional commissioner of Meerut, Surender Singh, told a leading publication, “We have already started preparations for the security and overall management. Now that Uttarakhand has cancelled it, we have to find another destination from where pilgrims can fetch Ganga water. For instance, devotees in eastern UP bring the holy water from Prayagraj and Varanasi. In the western region, one such site could be Garh Mukteshwar in Hapur. But our options are open and we are working in this direction.
District magistrate of Hapur, Anuj Singh, told the same publication that the administration will be able to hold the yatra in the town as the numbers will be less due to Covid. “The possibility of using Garh Mukteshwar ghats for the pilgirmage is being expolored as religious fairs take place throughout the year here. One to two lakh pilgrims routinely visit the twon during various meals. It is right that kanwar yatra is a big event, but due to the pandemic we don’t exect large gatherings,” he was quoted as saying.
“The health department will put up desk equipped with sanitisers, masks, thermal screening facility and testing on the route and the temples,” he added.
To participate in the yatra, which is scheduled to begin from July 25, the devotees have been asked to bring a Covid negative certificate.
