The annual Kailash Manasarovar Yatra will be held from 8th June to 8th of September. Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale said the External Affairs Ministry’s consistent effort has been to get as many applications as it can as the yatra is important not only for those going for spiritual or religious purposes but also to build relations between India and China. He was speaking at the Computerized Draw of lots for this year’s Yatra in New Delhi today.
Our correspondent reports that in all, the Ministry has received 2,996 applications. Of them, 2,256 are of male applicants, 74 female applicants. The yatra takes place through two routes — Lipulekh pass in Uttrakhand and Nathu La pass in Sikkim.
The number of batches for Lipulekh route is 18, with yatris per batch at 58. For Nathu La, the number of batches stands at 10, with 48 yatris per batch. Two liaison officers will assist each batch of yatris.
Nathu La route opened a few years ago is fully motorable and requires a minimum of walking. 624 senior citizens applied for the yatra and will be preferred via Nathu La route
