Kanwar Yatra EXPLAINED: Mapping 210-km Delhi-Haridwar Route, 60 Million Devotees Expected Amidst Security & QR Code Controversy-OxBig News Network

Crores of saffron-robed pilgrims have started the month-long annual Kanwar Yatra, a religious yatra in honor of Lord Shiva, that started on July 11. With recitation of ‘Har Har Mahadev’ echoes, pilgrims are embarking on a spiritual odyssey, at times barefoot, to sacred shrines to fetch holy Ganga water to perform ‘jalabhishek’ rituals during the Hindu calendar month of ‘Shravan’.

This year, the Uttar Pradesh government is expecting a record 60 million pilgrims, among which seven million are women, to travel through the Kanwar Yatra route across the state. Delhi has also turned into an important transit point, with 15 to 20 lakh Kanwariyas passing through on their way to the holy Ganga ghats of Haridwar and Rishikesh.

Charting the 210-km Devotional Route from Delhi to Haridwar

The tiresome 210-kilometer road distance from Delhi to Haridwar and Rishikesh is broken by various authorized pitstops, which are well-provided with tents, medical camps, and restaurants to cater to the pilgrims.

Partapur Village, Uttar Pradesh: Around 60 km from Delhi, this initial key stop has some five police tents, 15-20 devotee camps, and two to three medical camps, with a fire tender ready in case of any emergency.

Modipuram, Uttar Pradesh: This 90 km distance from Delhi features in excess of a dozen camps and has over 500 police officers deployed.

Khatauli and Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh: These are important stops before Uttarakhand. A notable Shiva temple in Muzaffarnagar is a very important point, according to reports, attracting more than one million Kanwariyas every year. “The yatra is not complete without a parikrama at the Shiv temple,” head priest Harish Bhardwaj said in a report to Hindustan Times.

Roorkee: The second last point before pilgrims arrive at Haridwar to fetch Ganga water. Some come back from Haridwar to their hometowns, while others go to Rishikesh to see the Neelkanth temple, which saw six lakh devotees last year on a single day.

To provide a safe and hassle-free experience for the huge pilgrimage, the Uttar Pradesh government has launched a massive security drive. The drive involves deploying 587 gazetted officers, 2,040 inspectors, 13,520 sub-inspectors, and 39,965 constables of police and paramilitary personnel. Adding strength to this, 1,486 women sub-inspectors and 8,541 women constables are present on the ground supported by 50 companies of PAC and central forces and 1,424 home guards.

Yatra Under Fire: Hooliganism, Traffic, and Controversial Directives

Though rooted in religious sanctity, Kanwar Yatra has come under the spotlight of late with concerns about sporadic cases of hooliganism, vandalism, and blanket traffic snarls.

Recently, a First Information Report (FIR) was registered after glass shards were found strewn on a Kanwar Yatra route in northeast Delhi’s Dilshad Garden. Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena shared a video of the site on social media, confirming that the crime branch is investigating the matter to ascertain any malicious intent or communal angle. According to a report by Quint, the 2024 Kanwar Yatra witnessed at least 20 documented cases of violence.

Adding to the complications are some directives issued by state governments, which have raised controversy and led to charges of religious profiling. The Uttar Pradesh government headed by Yogi Adityanath has ordered that restaurants and food stalls on the 540-km Kanwar yatra route stretching from Meerut to Muzaffarnagar should have a QR code displayed. The QR code is intended to bring forth important information like the identity of the owner, FSSAI license, reports of cleanliness, and vegetarian or non-vegetarian status of the food being offered.

The Supreme Court of India has requested a response from the government of Uttar Pradesh on a petition against this order. This comes after a similar intervention last year, when the top court stayed similar orders issued by BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Madhya Pradesh governments, which had mandated restaurants along the Kanwar Yatra routes to display the names of their owners and workers publicly.