Hemkund Sahib portals to close on October10

The annual pilgrimage to Gurdwara Sri Hemkund Sahib will end on October 10, as declared by the Gurdwara Hemkund Sahib Management Trust.

Around 2 lakh pilgrims visited the shrine this year. The journey to the holy place started on May 25.

Located at a height of over 15,000 feet on the banks of a Himalayan lake in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district, Sri Hemkund Sahib is the highest Sikh shrine in the world.

Narinderjit Singh Bindra, president of the Gurdwara Sri Hemkund Sahib Management Trust, confirmed that the portals of the Sikh shrine would be closed on October 10 after the mid-day prayers as per the Gurmat maryada. He said “akhand path” would be initiated on October 8.

He has appealed to the pilgrims, who wanted to visit the shrine in the current session, to make their itinerary keeping in mind the closing date.

“The decision was taken after having a joint meeting with the Uttarakhand Government and local administration officials. At present, the weather in Uttarakhand is pleasant and conducive for the journey,” he said.

The management believes that around 35,000 devotees would visit the shrine over the next three weeks. Last year, around 2.5 lakh pilgrims had visited it.