Though there have been only a few non-violent protests in Uttarakhand against the Citizenship Amendment Act, the violence seen in places like West Bengal and Delhi has affected the flow of pilgrims to Haridwar. The cancellation of a number of trains to Haridwar due to Kumbh Mela works and fog has also affected the arrival of pilgrims here.
The Haridwar railway station superintendent MK Singh said that this station is used by 43 trains but presently, 27 out of these are cancelled.
Recently, the local traders had submitted a memorandum to Singh, requesting the smooth operation of trains to and from Haridwar. Singh says that the memorandum has been forwarded to the higher authorities but due to fog and Kumbh Mela works, some of the trains have been cancelled.
Meanwhile, the locals involved in business related to pilgrimage and tourism state that the disruption caused by those opposing CAA in some parts of the country has affected business in Haridwar. This is the time when visitors especially from West Bengal arrive in Haridwar but this is not happening this time.
A hotel owner Aditya Khanna said that a lot of groups from West Bengal visit Haridwar in December.
“One such group was to arrive on Tuesday but the head of the group called and said that since the situation in Kolkata and Delhi is not good, the group had cancelled their visit to Haridwar,” said Khanna.
General secretary of the local hotel association, Mintu Panjwani said that the association had requested administration to resume the smooth movement of trains so that the local businesses can earn some revenue during the winter off-season.
He said that compared to the last season, the business now is about 50 per cent less.