Mustang. The premises of the Muktinath Temple at Waragung Mukti Kshetra-1 have been deserted due to heavy snowfall. The famous Muktinath temple complex has been deserted after the Kagbeni-Muktinath road section was obstructed due to snowfall.

Vehicles en route to Muktinath from Jomsom have not been able to move up the Kagbeni-Muktinath road section due to heavy snowfall. A team of the Armed Police Force (APF) had taken the initiative to clear the obstructed road by clearing snow on Wednesday morning, but efforts were halted due to the possibility of more snowfall.

According to Pramesh Gurung, ward chairperson of Waragung Mukti Chhetra-1, the road section has been obstructed due to the accumulation of snowfall at Kagbeni Selfie Park, Kalobhir, Khinga, Jharkot among other places along the Kagbeni-Muktinath road section. Ward Chair Gurung said that some of the devotees are heading to Muktinath on horses from Kagbeni as the road has been disrupted due to snowfall.

Meanwhile, the snowfall has added problems and challenges to the arrival of visitors to the temple, said Dinesh Bhusal, manager of the Muktinath Development Committee. Manager Bhusal said that more than 500 tourists used to visit the temple on a daily basis before the snowfall but the number of devotees has been very negligible since Wednesday.

Manager Bhusal said that the daily activities of the temple will be limited to regular worship until the Kagbeni-Muktinath road is resumed. The heavy snowfall on Tuesday night has covered the entire Muktinath area with snow. Villages including Jharkot, Khinga, Ranipauwa Bazaar, Purang and Chhengur among others in the Waragung Mukti Kshetra have been covered with snow.

The snow has accumulated in the temple premises, 108 Dhara and the bathing pond in front of the temple, obstructing the devotees from taking bath and visiting the temple. There is a risk of the visitors getting cold as the cold has increased after the snowfall.

The Kagbeni-Korala and Muktinath road sections have been obstructed since Wednesday due to heavy snowfall in Mustang, according to the District Police Office, Mustang. According to Police Inspector Santosh Basyal, the two-feet thick snowfall on the road from Chusang to Korala has obstructed the road. Visitors to Muktinath have been stranded at Kagbeni since Wednesday morning as the road was disrupted due to snowfall, he added.

Similarly, the Kagbeni-Kagbeni-road could come into operation after the snow melted once the weather permits, said Police Inspector Basyal. Normal life in Upper Mustang has been affected due to snowfall, Police Inspector Basyal said.