DEHRADUN: As compared to a total of 39 deaths of pilgrims during the six-month yatra in 2016, 31 persons have died in just 23 days since the Char Dham yatra started on April 28. Health department officials claimed that pilgrims don’t adhere to dos and don’ts of the yatra and the elderly among them are getting struck by hypothermia (abnormally low body temperature) and hypoxemia (low concentration of oxygen in blood ) resulting in cardiac arrest Of all the pilgrims, maximum deaths were recorded from Karnataka (5), followed by Maharashtra (4), and Madhya Pradesh (3) and Rajasthan (3).Health officials have claimed that pilgrims from southern states are particularly at risk since their bodies take more time to acclimatize to the cold climate of hills and any carelessness could lead to sudden cardiac arrest.Dr Tripti Bahuguna, health department nodal officer for the yatra, said, “We have come across various cases where pilgrims walk barefoot or in just a single layer of clothing in freezing weather conditions. Particularly those from the weaker sections of the society who cannot afford palanquins or mules are at greater risk.”According to the health department statistics, 31 deaths were recorded among the total 5.78 lakh people who have completed pilgrimage so far this year. In 2016, 39 people had died of the 15 lakh pilgrims in six months. In 2015, only eight persons had died of the total 9 lakh pilgrims.According to the officials, the toll this year may be higher due to increased inflow of pilgrims.“A 16km stretch from Gaurikund is to be walked to reach Kedarnath shrine while it take 13km from Hanumanchatti and a 6km walk from Janki Chatti to reach Yamunotri tremple. And these two are the most risky treks. The weather remains most unpredictable in these areas and it may rain any moment. Hence, pilgrims need to stick to the advice being dispensed to them by the health department at the onset of their journey from Haridwar/Rishikesh,” said Dr Bahuguna.Unlike Amarnath yatra, the health department has yet not made health certificate mandatory for Char Dham pilgrims. The department said it is impossible for them to conduct health check-up of each yatri due to lack of manpower and infrastructure. “On an average each shrine sees at least 5,000 to 10,000 pilgrims per day, and if start stopping each pilgrim for the health check-up then it will make entire yatra haphazard. It is most favourable for the yatris to respect their health and do not undertake the yatra if their health doesn’t permit,” said Dr Viraj Shah, chief medical officer, Chamoli.The pilgrims had earlier blamed the spike in cardiac arrest cases to lack of cardiologists in health facilities set up on the yatra route. For the record, Uttarakhand doesn’t have even a single cardiologist in any of its government hospitals, though 23 posts of cardiologists are sanctioned. Currently, there are two diploma-holder cardiologists (those who obtain a diploma in cardiology after their MBBS and are not MD or MS) in the entire state and both of them have applied for voluntary retirement.Following the complaints, Union health minister J P Nadda spoke with Uttarakhand CM Trivendra Singh Rawat on Wednesday and offered Centre’s medical assistance for the six-month-long pilgrimage. Taking into account the seriousness of the matter, the CM ordered a cardiac ambulance and a cardiologist to be stationed immediately at Guptkashi.