It is often said that when spirits are high, every task becomes easier. This saying holds true for Chhotu Ram, a 67-year-old resident of Nangal Tulsidas village in Jaipur, Rajasthan. A former government employee, Chhotu Ram has been undertaking padyatras to Vaishno Devi, Amarnath, and Ramdevra for the past 21 years. Despite his lean physique and senior age, his strength keeps him moving.
Inspired by An Elderly Pilgrim
Chhotu Ram, who served in the Public Works Department until 2018, was inspired by an elderly man. In conversation with Local18, he shared that in 2003 he encountered a group of pilgrims undertaking the Ramdevra padyatra. At that time, a 70-year-old devotee caught his attention.
He further added that he couldn’t stop thinking about how that man would manage to complete such a long journey. Deeply inspired, Chhotu Ram decided to join the pilgrimage thinking, “If he can do it, so can I.”
On the same day, he set off for Hasanpura, starting point of the Ramdevra Padayatra in Jaipur, and embarked on his first journey alongside his brother-in-law, Ghasi Ram.
Chhotu Ram has been continuously undertaking these pilgrimages. Since 2003, he has completed 26 padayatras to Ramdevra, four to Vaishno Devi, and one to Amarnath. Most recently, he embarked on a pilgrimage to Vaishno Devi and Amarnath on June 9, 2024. He reached Vaishno Devi on July 4, and Amarnath on July 14.
Despite the exhaustion of these long journeys, he set off for the Ramdevra pilgrimage from Nangal Tulsidas on 23 August, arriving on September 2.
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