Often, the rich and influential are called out for widening the class divide by doing things that separate them from the rest. The recent revelation of how Kedarnath pilgrims have been using ambulances as a kind of taxi, in order to skip queues and traffic, has caught the attention of many.
This was witnessed during the recently held Mahakumbh Mela as well. Where regular people called out how the wealthy or those with means were enjoying perks such as skipping queues, entire plots of land being reserved so that a select few could do their pilgrimage away from the regular crowds, transport being brought into restricted areas where only foot-traffic was allowed.
What has happened with these pilgrims in Kedarnath, though?
What Have The Pilgrims Been Doing?
As per reports, the Uttarakhand Police found that pilgrims who were otherwise fit and healthy were using ambulances as a kind of taxi on the Kedarnath trek route.
This revelation came about after the police stopped and seized two ambulances on that trek route on Saturday.
Both these ambulances were going toward Gaurikund, cutting through the crowds at Sonprayag. Gaurikund is the last motorable point in the Kedarnath trek route, post which lies a 16-km uphill journey to the temple.
The vehicles came under the radar of police officers as they saw them speeding through the streets of Sonprayag, and suspicions were raised since the officers had not received a report of any distress call or accident that would require those services.
In those ambulances, they found some people, pilgrims visiting the holy site; however, none of them had any record of a medical emergency and looked perfectly healthy. Reports claim that, upon searching the vans, the police did not find any stretchers, bandaged limbs, or patients in need of medical care inside.
Only three uninjured men, calmly seated, were discovered. It was also noted that Gaurikund does not have a hospital that could take patients.
Read More: Watch: 5 Controversies That Erupted In Maha Kumbh 2025
When the officers questioned the two drivers, Nikhil Wilson Massih from Haridwar and Krishna Kumar from Amroha, they revealed that the vehicles had been hired by the pilgrims for convenience.
The drivers were unaware of how much money was charged for these rides, claiming that “Our job was just to take the ambulances up to Gaurikund,” as told to them by the vehicle owners.
A ‘luxury’ ambulance with an air-conditioner was booked by a single pilgrim, while the ‘basic’ one carried two. These were passengers who had booked the ambulances; the drivers claimed that they picked up three more people while going uphill from Haridwar.
According to a TOI report, officers claimed that these ambulances, with their flashing lights and sirens, were being used to skip past the long line of pilgrims who were on their way to the shrine.
The reason for this is that while the Kedarnath trek from Gaurikund is carried out on foot, exceptions are made for those suffering from ailments or medical emergencies. However, it seems that some people are now hiring those ambulances and faking ailments to skip all that hassle of actually walking up all that difficult terrain.
A policeman at Sonprayag speaking with TOI said, “The unusual thing was that the ambulance was moving towards Gaurikund and that too with people who had posed as patients. If someone is unwell, there is no reason for going towards Gaurikund to take the trek route.”
He added, “If there had been some medical emergency, an ambulance should have moved towards Sonprayag, Rampur and Rudraprayag. Therefore, it was very surprising for the police team.”
This has only brought light on the topic of how some people misuse emergency services for their own gain, and could be harming those who actually need them.
Image Credits: Google Images
Sources: Moneycontrol, The Economic Times, News18
Find the blogger: @chirali_08
This post is tagged under: Kedarnath, Kedarnath pilgrims, Kedarnath ambulance, Kedarnath police, Kedarnath news, Kedarnath yatra
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