Chairing a high-level meeting at the state secretariat, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami instructed officials to devise comprehensive strategies to prevent incidents like the Mansa Devi stampede. He emphasized the need for immediate action to ensure the safety of pilgrims at major religious sites.

On Monday, Dhami directed officials to deploy adequate crowd management systems at key pilgrimage sites, including Mansa Devi, Chandi Devi Temple in Haridwar, Purnagiri Dham in Tanakpur, Kainchi Dham in Nainital, Jageshwar Temple in Almora, Neelkanth Mahadev Temple in Pauri, and other popular destinations. He stressed the importance of keeping in mind the high influx of devotees while planning these measures.

The Chief Minister asked officials to make foolproof arrangements for crowd control, mandatory registration of devotees, and widening of footpaths and stairways to facilitate smooth movement. He also directed the removal of encroachments along temple routes and instructed that all basic amenities be made available to ensure a safe and hassle-free experience for pilgrims.

Dhami further instructed senior bureaucrats to formulate development plans for each religious site based on their carrying capacity. He emphasised the need for organised shop management in the vicinity of temples and strengthening of regulated darshan systems to avoid chaos.

He reiterated that registration of devotees should be made mandatory and a system of controlled and phased entry should be implemented at major temples.

The Chief Minister also ordered the formation of special monitoring committees, led by the commissioners of Kumaon and Garhwal divisions, to oversee crowd management at religious sites within their jurisdiction. These committees will include senior officials and be responsible for real-time monitoring and ensuring implementation of safety protocols.