Stopped from proceeding to the Kedarnath temple because of heavy rainfall on the route, a group of pilgrims broke through barricades in Uttarakhand's Sonprayag, forcing the police to carry out a mild lathi charge.
After last week's flash floods in Uttarkashi, in which at least four people were killed, authorities had suspended the Kedarnath yatra. Officials said heavy rainfall is still being recorded in several places in the state and there have been landslides along the Kedarnath route.
Pilgrims at Sonprayag had been stopped because of this, but some of them tried to force their way past the barricades. "Police had to resort to a mild lathi charge to bring the situation under control," said an official.
Videos show policemen hitting some pilgrims to get them to disperse.
Lathicharge on pilgrims in Sonprayag as they broke barricades. This comes after Kedarnath Yatra has been halted for 3 days after heavy rain @RawatKishor3 pic.twitter.com/BM74ChwMxD
— NDTV (@ndtv) August 13, 2025
On Tuesday, the Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority (USDMA) issued guidelines to all district magistrates after the IMD issued red, orange and yellow alerts across the state, warning of heavy to very heavy rainfall.
From Wednesday to Thursday, red alerts will be in effect for Dehradun, Tehri, Pauri, Haridwar, Udham Singh Nagar, Nainital and Bageshwar, which are expected to receive heavy to very heavy rain in a few places, with isolated instances of extremely heavy rain. The remaining districts will face heavy to very heavy rainfall under an orange alert.
Authorities have been instructed to monitor traffic, share timely updates, and ensure emergency preparedness, news agency ANI reported. People living near rivers, tributaries, streams, low-lying areas and floodplains have been urged to remain alert and be ready to move to higher ground if needed.
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