Join the Kailash-Mansarovar yatra

What: The Kailash Mansarovar Yatra will be organised by the ministry of external affairs from the end of May/ early June to September 2006.

Details

~ The yatra is open to all Indian citizens who are over 18 years old and wish to proceed to Kailash-Mansarovar for religious purposes.

~ The duration of the pilgrimage is 26 days. In addition, you will need to spend four days in New Delhi to obtain visas, undergo a comprehensive medical examination and complete financial formalities.

~ Sixteen batches, each consisting of a maximum of 60 pilgrims, will be sent this year.

~ The first batch is expected to depart from New Delhi in the last week of May/ first week of June 2006.

~ The yatra is expected to continue till the end of September 2006.

~ The last batch is expected to depart in the end of August/ beginning of September 2006.

Batch schedule

• Batch 1: May 29 to June 26
• Batch 2: June 4 to July 2
• Batch 3: June 10 to July 8
• Batch 4: June 16 to July 14
• Batch 5: June 22 to July 20
• Batch 6: June 28 to July 26
• Batch 7: July 4 to August 1
• Batch 8: July 10 to August 7
• Batch 9: July 16 to August 13
• Batch 10: July 22 to August 19
• Batch 11: July 26 to August 25
• Batch 12: August 3 to August 31
• Batch 13: August 9 to September 6
• Batch 14: August 14 to September 12
• Batch 15: August 21 to September 18
• Batch 16: August 27 to September 24

~ Applicants should ensure they possess an Indian passport valid for more than six months.

~ The total cost of the yatra will include the following:

• Rs 15,500 to be paid to Kumaon Mandal Vikas Nigam; Rs 5,000 is to be paid as a non-refundable deposit when confirming participation in the yatra, and the rest on arrival in Delhi to begin the yatra.
• Rs 1,950 to be paid to ITBP to cover cost of medical examination/ tests at Delhi. In case an individual requires a Pulmonary Function Test, an additional Rs 500 will be charged; this amount is also non-refundable.
• US$ 700 to be paid to the Chinese side.
• Expenditure on adequate equipment, clothing, food stores, porters, baggage, ponies and other items required for the yatra (a detailed list of minimum requirements will be sent to the selected applicants).

~ The yatra is extremely arduous (more so than the Vaishnodevi/ Amarnath routes), involves trekking at a high altitude of 19,500 feet under inhospitable conditions, including extreme cold and rugged terrain, and may prove hazardous for those who are not physically or medically fit.

~ The Indian Mountaineering Foundation has recognised the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra as a trekking expedition. There is a considerable element of risk to life and property.

~ Please note that the government shall not be responsible in any manner for any loss of life or injury to the person of the pilgrims, or any loss or damage to their property due to any natural calamity or due to any other reason. Pilgrims undertake the yatra under their own volition, cost, risk and consequences.

~ KMVN provides insurance against accident during the yatra for each pilgrim through the United India Insurance Company Ltd, for an amount of Rs 5,00,000.

~ Applicants should be physically healthy, medically fit and should not suffer from conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, asthma, heart disease, epilepsy, etc.

~ All selected applicants are required to undergo a comprehensive medical examination conducted by ITBP in New Delhi.

~ Applicants found medically unfit will not be allowed to proceed on the yatra and will forfeit the non-refundable deposit paid to KMVN and the amount paid to ITBP.

~ Please note that no other medical certificates or test reports will be accepted.

~ For the list of tests included in the ITBP medical examination, visit http://www.kmyatra.org/.

~ A second medical test to ascertain to altitude trekking will be done by ITBP at Gunji, after six days of the yatra, at a height of 3,500 metres. Those persons found medically unfit here will not be permitted to continue the yatra.

~ The finding and recommendation of the ITBP medical personnel, both in Delhi and Gunji, will be final and binding.

~ In the eventuality of a pilgrim being qualified on medical grounds at Gunji, it will not be possible to refund the charges levied by Kumaon Mandal Vikas Nigam.

~ The selection of pilgrims will be done by the ministry of external affairs through a random, computer-generated, gender-balanced selection process.

~ Selected persons will be informed telegraphically about their inclusion in a particular batch three to four weeks before their scheduled departure.

~ Spouses will be automatically selected (provided they apply), subject to clearing the medical test.

~ Selected applicants will be required to confirm their participation in a particular batch by sending a non-refundable demand draft of Rs 5,000 in favour of KMVN to ministry of external affairs by a specific deadline.

~ The following conditions may please be noted carefully:

• It is the individual's responsibility to ensure that applications contain accurate information and that they are complete in every detail.
• Incomplete applications will be rejected and will not be processed.
• If it is found that wrong information has been given in the application form, this will be ground for disqualification, even after selection has been confirmed/ yatra has begun. If disqualified on this ground after selection, the non-refundable deposit paid to KMVN will be forfeited.
• After receiving the telegram announcing the preliminary selection, confirmation that the selected applicant can travel should be received in this ministry before the stated deadline. Else, it will be presumed that the selected applicant cannot travel and he or she will be replaced from the stand-by list.
• Failure to pass the medical examination at Delhi or Gunji will be grounds for disqualification. Medical certificates issued by any other source other than the ITBP doctors at Delhi and Gunji will not be accepted.
• If an applicant is disqualified on medical grounds at Delhi, he or she will forfeit the non-refundable deposit paid to KMVN.
• If an applicant is disqualified on medical grounds at Gunji, he will forfeit the total amount paid as yatra fees to KMVN.
• The groups will leave on the scheduled dates, even if replacements called from the standby lists to fill any vacancies that may arise are unable to join the group on time.

~ Complete applications in the prescribed format given below should be sent to:

Address
Section Officer (China)
Room No 255 (A)
South Block
Ministry of External Affairs
New Delhi -- 110 011

Important date

~ Please send in your applications before March 31.

~ For acknowledgement of receipt, please attach a self-addressed postcard with the application.

~ For further details and the format for applying, visit http://www.kmyatra.org/.