India asks China to open route to Kailash Mansoravar

NEW DELHI: India on Tuesday asked China to open Ladakh route for annual Kailash Mansarovar pilgrimage.

During his talks with visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said the Chinese side should open additional route for the yatra via Damchok in Ladakh.

Damchok is an easier and less time-consuming route for the pilgrimage which is undertaken by thousands of Indians every year.

China remained non-committal on this but said it was making efforts to improve infrastructure on the existing route via Himachal Pradesh.

This was appreciated by Mukherjee.