Badrinath-Kedarnath Mandir Samiti chairman Ajendra Ajay on Sunday inaugurated the mobile and data services of Reliance Jio on the Kedarnath trek route. With this Reliance Jio became the first operator to give mobile and data connectivity on the trek route between Gaurikund and the Himalayan shrine, the telecommunication firm said in a statement.

Pilgrims en route to the temple will now stay connected with their loved ones through voice or video calls, it said.

With a huge number of pilgrims coming this year on Char Dham Yatra, Jio has expanded its network on the Kedarnath trek route to give a superior mobile connectivity experience to devotees, the statement by Reliance Jio said.

After a gap of two years during which the yatra was interrupted due to the Covid pandemic, there is a huge rush of pilgrims this year for the Himalayan temples.

A full capacity tower has been installed at Sonprayag, a very important halt location, in accordance with the plan to install five towers between Gaurikund and Kedarnath, the firm said.

Three towers at Chhoti Lincholi, Lincholi and Rudrapoint have already been installed and the remaining two will be erected soon, it added.

Ten additional solutions are being offered and the mobile network has been given the fibre link for uninterrupted connectivity to pilgrims on the route, the firm further said.