Kailash Yatra to resume this June after 5-year gap

The Kailash Manasarovar Yatra will take place between June and August this year, according to an announcement by the external affairs ministry on Saturday, resuming after a gap of five years.

The ministry said five groups--of 50 people each--will travel through the Lipulekh Pass in Uttarakhand, while 10 groups--of 50 people each--will move through the Nathu La Pass in Sikkim to reach Kailash Manasarovar.

The website at kmy.gov.in has been opened for acceptance of applications.


ET has learnt that special representatives of India and China could meet soon to address bilateral irritants amid fast-changing geopolitics and the terrorist attack at Pahalgam on Tuesday.

The Indian SR is national security advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval and his Chinese counterpart is Foreign Minister and Politburo member Wang Yi.

The SRs had last met in Beijing in December 2024 in accordance with the decision taken during the meeting between Prime Minister Modi and President Xi Jinping in Kazan for them to meet at an early date to oversee the management of peace and tranquility in border areas and to explore a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable solution to the boundary issue.

The travellers for this year's yatra will be selected from among applicants through a computer-generated, random and gender-balanced selection process, according to a statement from the ministry.

"Since 2015, the entire process commencing with online application till selection of yatris is a fully-computerised process," the ministry said. "Therefore, applicants do not need to send letters or fax to seek information. The feedback options on the website can be used for obtaining information, registering observations or making suggestions for improvement."

The Kailash Mansarovar Yatra has not taken place since 2020, the year of the Covid-19 outbreak, and the subsequent non-renewal of yatra arrangements by the Chinese side.

In January, India and China decided to resume the yatra and agreed in principle to restore direct flights. The decisions were announced after foreign secretary Vikram Misri held wide-ranging talks with Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong in Beijing.

In March, they expedited the process to resume cross-border cooperation and exchanges, including on trans-border rivers and Kailash Mansarovar Yatra as a confidence building measure (CBM) to stabilise ties.