• India announced the resumption of the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra from June to August, after a gap of five years.

• The pilgrimage to Mount Kailash and Mansarovar Lake in China's Tibet Autonomous Region holds religious significance to Hindus as well as Jains and Buddhists.

• Mount Kailash in the remote south-west corner of Tibet in the Himalayan Mountains has a height of 6,638 m. It is one of the highest parts of the Himalayas and serves as a source of some of the longest rivers in Asia — Indus, Sutlej, Brahmaputra, and Ghaghara (Karnali).

• Lake Mansarovar is located at the southern foot of Mount Kailash. The shape of Lake Manasarovar is round with around 88 km circumference.

• The Yatra was suspended initially in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequently because of the military standoff between the two sides on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh.

• The resumption of the Yatra is seen as a part of efforts by India and China to improve ties after the two countries completed the disengagement of troops at the two remaining friction points of Demchok and Depsang under a pact sealed in October 2024.

• This year, five batches, each consisting of 50 pilgrims, and 10 batches, each consisting of 50 pilgrims, are scheduled to travel through Uttarakhand State crossing over at Lipulekh Pass, and through Sikkim state crossing over at Nathu La Pass, respectively.

• Since 2015, the entire process commencing with on-line application till selection of pilgrims is a fully computerised process. 

• The pilgrims will be selected from among applicants through a fair, computer-generated, random and gender-balanced selection process.

Manorama Yearbook app is now available on Google Play Store and iOS App Store