Uttarakhand: As Winter Sets in, Portals Of Hemkund Sahib Closed

The portals of Hemkund Sahib, among the most revered shrines of the Sikhs in the Chamoli Garhwal region of Uttarakhand, have been closed for the winters.

More than 2,000 pilgrims attended the prayers preceding the closure of the gates of the shrine which is located at an elevation of over 15,000 feet.

Senior Manager of Hemkund, Sardar Seva Singh said that the gurudwara was visited by over two lakh devotees this season. The total number of pilgrims that visited the shrine this year reportedly stands at 2,29,500. Earlier, 80,000 pilgrims visited the shrin,e in 2016 and 227,000 visited in 2017. The gates of the shrine, will now re-open in May-June next year.

Gates of Lakshman Lokpal temple which is situated near the Hemkund Sahib were also closed for the winters. People of the Bhyundar village closed the gates with complete rituals and pooja.

The procedure for closing the gates of the Lakshman Lokpal temple begun at 5:30 am in the morning. The gates of the temple were closed at 1:30 pm.