Char Dham Yatra: Char Dham Yatra frees one from the cycle of birth and death

Uttarakhand is called the land of gods. It is believed that by visiting Char Dham located in Devbhoomi Uttarakhand, a seeker attains salvation. In Hindu scriptures, the special importance of visiting Char Dham i.e. Kedarnath, Badrinath, Gangotri, and Yamunotri has been mentioned. So let us know when the Char Dham Yatra is going to start this year.

Importance of Char Dham Yatra

According to the scriptures, by visiting Char Dham all the sins of a person are destroyed. At the same time, that person also becomes free from the cycle of birth and death. Such a person does not have to take birth again in the mortal world and he attains salvation. An interesting fact about the Chardham Yatra of Uttarakhand is that it is not the first of its name.

As surprising as it may sound, the one that takes place in Uttarakhand is actually the Chhota Chardham Yatra, what translates into the shorter version of the Chardham Yatra. The original Chardham refers to the four holy sites situated in four different corners of the country, established by Adi Shankaracharya back in the eighth century AD. The places he had established as the Chardham were Badrinath, Puri, Rameshwaram, and Dwarka. However, a smaller circuit of the pilgrimage was made out of Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath, and Badrinath in the Indian Himalayas of Uttarakhand.

Importance of the four shrines

The starting point of the Chardham Yatra is Haridwar, from where pilgrims begin their journey to the four holy shrines. First, they visit Yamunotri, then to the famous Gangotri, followed by the Kedarnath Dham, and finally they go to the pilgrimage at the Badrinath Dham. There are reasons why such a sequence is followed in the Chardham Yatra, and also each of these four shrines has its own significance attached to it.

Char Dham Yatra 2024 opening date

How to register for Char Dham Yatra?

• Devotees can register themselves online on the website designated by the Uttarakhand Tourism Department.
• Visit the Char Dham Yatra website registrationandtouristcare.uk.gov.in.
• After this click on Register or Login button.
• Then fill the required information including your name, contact number, email ID, etc.
• Complete the registration with the OTP sent to your mobile number.
• After this, a new dashboard will appear, where the person will have complete travel information like the date of the trip, number of tourists, pilgrimage places to visit, and more.
• Once the registration is complete, a registration number will be sent to the registered mobile number.
• Then you can later download the registration card for Char Dham Yatra.
• Apart from this, you can avail the facility of registration by calling the toll-free number 0135-1364 of the Tourism Department. Along with this, registration can also be done through the Tourist Care Uttarakhand mobile app.

Offline registration in Haridwar and Rishikesh

Devotees can register offline at Rahi Motel in Haridwar and Passenger Registration Office and Transit Camp in Rishikesh. The number of offline registrations per day for each Dham has been fixed at 1000 in Rishikesh and 500 in Haridwar. Devotees can register for the Yatra to Char Dham at the registration counters for a maximum of three days.

Char Dham Yatra package

Book with Globeway Travels

This time the transport department rejected the demand of transporters to increase the fares of buses and taxis.

• Chardham/Hemkund Yatra Bus Fares
• Seat, Class, Fare, Waiting Fee
• 20 Seater, All Category, Rs 70, None
• 21 to 30 seats, ordinary, Rs 63, Rs 3500
• 21 to 30 seats, deluxe, Rs 76, Rs 5000
• 21 to 30 seats, AC, Rs 89, Rs 5500
• 31 to 45 seats, ordinary, Rs 76, Rs 5000
• 31 to 45 seats, Deluxe, Rs 83, Rs 6000
• 31 to 45 seats, AC, Rs 95, Rs 7000
• (Note: Fare is per km, while waiting fee is per day.)

• taxi fare
• Category, Route, Non AC, AC
• Ordinary, Plain, Rs 16, Rs 18
• Ordinary, Mountain, Rs 18, Rs 20
• Deluxe, Maidan, Rs 20, Rs 22
• Deluxe, Mountain, Rs 22, Rs 25

• luxury and super luxury taxi
• class, route, fare
• Luxury, Maidan, Rs 25
• Luxury, Mountain, Rs 27
• Super Luxury, Maidan, Rs 35
• Super Luxury, Mountain, Rs 40
• (Note: Fare is per km.)

• taxi waiting fee
• Ordinary: Rs 50 for the first two hours, and Rs 50 per hour above that.
• Deluxe: Rs 75 for first two hours and Rs 100 per hour above.
• Luxury: Rs 100 for the first two hours and Rs 150 per hour above.
• Super Luxury: Rs 125 per hour for first two hours and Rs 200 above.

Where to book helicopter service

Booking of helicopter tickets for Chardham Yatra in the state has started from April 20. Booking of Kedarnath Helicopter service tickets has been completed till June 20. This booking is being done through the IRCTC website. This time the price of heli tickets has been increased by five percent.

To avoid fraud, it is requested to book tickets only from the official website heliyatra.irctc.co.in .

Heli service for Badrinath also

This year, heli service is also being started for Badrinath Dham. Civil Aviation Department is starting heli service from Gauchar to Badrinath.

Its one-way fare will be Rs 3970. This does not include GST and the convenience fee of IRCTC for booking heli. This fee will be payable separately.

• These are the rental rates
• Govindghat-Gauchar – 3970
• Gauchar – Govindghat-3960
• Gauchar-Badrinath – 3960
• Badrinath-Gauchar – 3960
• Badrinath-Govindghat – 1320
• Govindghat-Badrinath – 1320
• Govindghat-Ghangaria – 2780
• Ghangaria-Govindghat- 2780
• (Note: GST and IRCTC convenience fee not included)

Duration of 10 days fixed for Char Dham Yatra Package

• The duration for the journey to one Dham has been fixed for three days, the journey to two Dhams for five days, the journey to three Dhams for seven days, and 10 days for the journey to Char Dham.
• No movement of vehicles from 10 pm to 4 am
• Vehicles will not be operated from 10 pm to 4 am during the Chardham Yatra.
• While operating maxi cabs and motor cabs on travel routes, loud sounds like songs and music from mediums like CD players, pen drives, and radio will be prohibited.
• All commercial passenger vehicles must obtain a green card and vehicle trip card for every trip.
• It is necessary to keep a first aid box, fire extinguisher, wooden block, and rope in the vehicle. The driver and conductor should be in the prescribed uniform.
• In case of bad weather or landslides on mountain routes, the guidelines of the local administration should be followed.
• Entry must be made at the check post while starting the journey and on return.
• Any kind of name or designation boards, sirens, hooters, and red, yellow, and blue lights are prohibited in the vehicle.
• Pressure horn, multiple horn, and glare light will not be used.
• No driver should wash vehicles in water from natural sources.

Sign boards in different languages

Most of the travelers reach Kedarnath from South India, Central India, Maharashtra, Gujarat etc. and North India. Messages, information, and sign boards will be put up in the respective dialect language for their easy understanding. In this, three types of sign boards will be installed in Marathi, Gujarati, English, Hindi, and Tamil languages ​​according to the geographical conditions of the district.

Tourism Police will be deployed at various places to help the pilgrims, will provide various information to the pilgrims, and also help them. Rescue teams, SDRF, DDRF Fire Service, and disaster management teams will also be ready all the time to deal with any disaster situation. In case of any problem, tourists can call 112.