New Delhi:

India and China held a two-day foreign secretary-level talks in which it was decided to resume Kailash-Mansarovar yatra in the summer. The relevant mechanism will discuss the modalities for doing so as per existing agreements, the foreign ministry said in a statement. There was also an in-principle agreement for resumption of direct flights between the two nations.

Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri had visited Beijing for a meeting of the Foreign Secretary-Vice Foreign Minister mechanism between India and China today. 

As agreed between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping at their meeting in Kazan in October, the two sides reviewed the state of India-China bilateral relations and agreed to take certain people-centric steps to stabilize and rebuild ties.

The resumption of the yatra is seen as a big step in this direction. 
The yatra– which involves a visit to mount Kailash and Mansarovar lake in Tibet — has been suspended since the Covid outbreak of 2020. 

Post-Covid, there was no renewal of arrangements by the Chinese side amid prickly relations between Beijing and New Delhi. The situation escalated after the Galwan clash.

The meet also agreed in principle to resume direct air services between the two countries; the relevant technical authorities on the two sides will meet and negotiate an updated framework for this purpose at an early date.

An early meeting of the India-China Expert Level Mechanism will also be held to discuss resumption of provision of hydrological data and other cooperation pertaining to trans-border rivers.

During his visit, the Foreign Secretary called on Member of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, Director of the Office of Central Commission of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Minister Wang Yi, and Minister of the International Department of the Communist Party of China Liu Jianchao, the ministry said.

Lipulekh:

Adi Kailash, located in Uttarakhand, is among the holiest sites for Hindus, and the route once included a long stretch that could only be covered on foot. And it used to take days. But with the construction of a motorable road to Lipulekh, the pilgrimage is set to become easier.

NDTV visited Lipulekh Pass, Dharchula and Adi Kailash ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s scheduled visit to Uttarakhand tomorrow. Next to Lipulekh is the India-Nepal-Tibet border and the area beyond that is not accessible to civilians. From here, one can catch a glimpse of Mount Kailash.

Adi Kailash, about 5,945 metres tall, is in Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand. The route to both Kailash Mansarovar and Adi Kailash passes from Dharchula, but they separate from Gunji. While Adi Kailash is in India, Kailash Mansarovar is situated in Tibet, which China claims as its own territory. Currently, Kailash Mansarovar yatra remains suspended due to multiple factors.

The stretch from Dharchula to Tawaghat can be covered by road. The next mountainous stretch, which could earlier be covered only on foot and take around 8-10 days to cover, can now be covered by car. The road not only makes it easy for the pilgrims, but also opening employment opportunities for the locals.

Jolikong, near Adi Kailash, has a base camp of the Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP). About 40 km from here is the border between India, Tibet and Nepal. This is till where civilians are allowed. Jolikong has very few hotels.

Adi Kailash is believed to be the mountain where Shiva and Parvati had halted while going to take Samadhi on the Mount Kailash. Even today, the locals believe there is a belief that there is a Parvati temple where she had taken bath. A pond remains symbolic of the mythological belief.

PM Modi will visit the Adi Kailash temple and offer prayers on Thursday morning. He will also interact with the villagers in Gunji and offer prayers at Jageshwar temple in Almora district around noon. Later in the day, he will lay the foundation stones for several developmental projects in the state.