BENGALURU: The Karnataka government has made Aadhaar card mandatory for those going on the annual Char Dham pilgrimage (holy thirth yatra) to Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri and Yamunotri in Uttarakhand.The move comes in the backdrop of fears of misuse of Rs 20,000 travel subsidy being provided by the government to pilgrims. As per the revised Char Dham Yatra guidelines notified on August 17, Aadhaar card will be considered as a proof of domicile of the applicants who plan to avail the subsidy.A senior official in the muzrai department (religious endowments) said: “Every year, around 1,000-1,500 people, who are permanent residents of the state, avail the travel subsidy being given for Char Dham Yatra. But the number of pilgrims is likely to increase this year as a lot of travel operators have been luring more people by pointing to the travel subsidy being provided by the government. Since there’s a high probability of subsidy amount being misused or people submitting false travel documents, the government has decided to insist on Aadhaar card.”The subsidy was rolled out for residents of the state in 2014 by the Siddaramaiah government to encourage more people from the middleclass and the lower economic strata to undertake pilgrimages. This was also a strategy to score brownie points over the previous BJP government which had announced Rs 30,000 subsidy per person for Manasarovar Yatra.Now, the applicants have to undertake the pilgrimage through travel agencies or operators recognized by the state or the Centre and, on completion, must produce an affidavit from the agency. Pilgrims should obtain a pilgrim card issued by the Uttarakhand Tourism Council and submit it along with other travel documents to the muzrai commissioner within four months after the travel to avail subsidy. The amount will be transferred to pilgrims through RTGS to their bank accounts. Pilgrims who have claimed the subsidy once are not eligible to claim it for the second time.In the past, state and central government employees were not eligible to apply for subsidy as they were entitled to leave travel allowance ( LTA ). The new guidelines allow government employees to avail the benefits. “There had been pressure from government employees to allow them to embark on the Char Dham Yatra at a subsidized cost,” an IAS officer said.