Villagers of the Joshimath sub-division in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district and the state administration are divided over holding the Raj Jat Yatra (royal pilgrimage) to the Nanda Devi mountain.

The government and socio-religious groups that support the ruling BJP dispensation have said the Yatra would be held in 2027. The residents of over 400 villages in Chamoli have, however, resolved that they will observe the festival as per schedule this year and alleged that the government wants to push back the event to next year to “cash in on the religious euphoria in the 2027 Assembly elections”. The Yatra is held every 12 years, with the last one organised in 2014.

The dispute surfaced during a meeting of villagers in the auditorium of Nanda Nagar block on Monday. Administrative officials of Nanda Nagar, Deval and Tharali blocks who were present in the meeting said they were too busy dealing with natural calamities this year to prime up infrastructure for the pilgrimage.

But the majority of the villagers are against postponing the Yatra. They have formed the Ma Nanda Devi Sidhpeeth Mandir Kurud Ayojan Samiti and elected Harendra Singh Rawat, an ex-serviceman, as its president to move forward with their plan to organise the pilgrimage this year itself.

“We will hold another meeting on January 23 on the occasion of Basant Panchami and discuss the matter with all the stakeholders. One thing is clear — the Yatra will be organised as per schedule this year,” Rawat said on Tuesday.