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Healing Himalayas founder Pradeep Sangwan wants every Kedarnath yatri to carry back waste and help remove 100 tonnes of trash from the mountains
Meet The Man Who Wants Every Kedarnath Pilgrim To Carry Back 1kg Of Trash Each To Save The Himalayas
The majestic peaks of Kedarnath are witnessing an unprecedented human surge. Within just 40 days of the yatra opening, a jaw-dropping 10 lakh registered pilgrims reached the shrine, completely breaking all previous footfall records. But while record-breaking tourism brings economic cheer, it simultaneously unleashes an environmental nightmare on a highly fragile ecosystem.
But one man, Pradeep Sangwan, the founder of Healing Himalayas, is changing the rules of mountain tourism with a brilliant, low-tech, high-impact campaign that is blowing up on X (formerly Twitter).
Taking to social media, Sangwan shared an exhilarating update on their community-led mission:
“40 days of Kedarnath Yatra
10 lakh registered pilgrims reached breaking all previous records
Our carry me back yatra is now picking up
1 lakh yatri carrying 1kg = 100 tons removed
That’s our aim #HealingHimalayas
it’s all digital – so keeping records”
The Man Who Stood Up to Mountains of Trash
This massive milestone is deeply rooted in a journey that began years ago under much grimmer circumstances. A few years ago, the photo of a man sitting in the middle of a pile of trash in Himachal Pradesh’s Malana caught everyone’s attention. This tottering tower of filth had created a mountain of its own, symbolising the dark side of commercial tourism across the entire Himalayan region.
“On my visits to the region, I was both irked and saddened to see the piles of garbage disfiguring famous trekking spots,” Sangwan revealed in an interview with Outlook Traveller back in 2022. Instead of looking the other way, Sangwan took matters into his own hands. He started by asking friends and family to join him on treks to bring garbage back to base for proper disposal. By 2016, this relentless pursuit evolved into the Healing Himalayas Foundation (HHF).
The core mission is to embark on arduous journeys, clean out trash from picturesque treks, and spark a long-term behavioural change at a community level.
The Internet Reacts: “Simple Solutions Are The Best”
Sangwan’s mathematically elegant “1 Yatri = 1 KG” formula has resonated deeply with netizens tired of passive activism. The post has garnered immense praise, with users demanding that this model be replicated nationwide.
Sangwan highlighted how incredibly achievable the target is if broken down per person: “Yes – 250 grams to 5kg should be carried back by yatri’s/Pilgrims. That’s the campaign”
Another user lauded the sheer operational brilliance of the initiative: “wonderful initiative. Congrats for implementing this. Simple solutions are the best! Best wishes to you and everyone else involved!”
A third observer pointed out how monumental the achievement is for a 40-day window: “Excellent and inspiring, carry back left over stuff -100 tons in 40 days, incredible”
The viral post has also opened up a discussion about state accountability and the critical need to preserve vulnerable water bodies.
Tagging local authorities, one concerned traveller shared a grim memory from their previous trek: “@DmRudraprayag need more measures in Kedarnath to overcome plastic pollution in that fragile ecosystem. Last year I visited Kedarnath It was sad to see that so much plastic was flowing in the river Mandakini. Measures like these should be encouraged more 🙏”
Others urged that the “Carry Me Back” framework should no longer be confined to just mountain peaks: “It’s a great initiative Like this we need it for rivers, forest and other segment also”
40 days of Kedarnath Yatra10 lakh registered pilgrims reached breaking all previous records
Our carry me back yatra is now picking up
1 lakh yatri carrying 1kg = 100 tons removed
That’s our aim #HealingHimalayas
it’s all digital – so keeping records pic.twitter.com/wd2iurl0Vf
— Pradeep Sangwan (@iPradeepSangwan) June 2, 2026
Gamifying Civic Sense
Because Sangwan mentioned that the entire data logging for the ‘Carry Me Back’ Yatra is completely digital, tech-savvy users are advising the foundation to take it a step further by introducing interactive public tracking.
Suggesting a brilliant upgrade to gamify civic responsibility, a user wrote:
“we need live trashboards 🗑️ of the cleanups done ♻️ set a good example🎖️ reward civic sense🏆”
By turning a spiritual pilgrimage into an ecological rescue mission, Pradeep Sangwan is proving that the path to divinity can and absolutely should be clean. After all, carrying back a single kilogram of waste may seem insignificant to one person. But multiplied across lakhs of pilgrims, it could transform the impact of one of India’s busiest religious journeys.
About the Author
Mallika Bhagat is a Deputy News Editor at News18, where she leads the Lifestyle and Viral desks. A seasoned journalist and content strategist, she brings a decade of high-impact experience from India’…Read More
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