Mussoorie, May 30 -- Since the Char Dham Yatra commenced on April 30, the footfall of devotees reached 1.6 million till May 28, with over 70,000 devotees visiting the four scared shrines - Kedarnath, Badrinath, Gangotri, and Yamunotri - daily, officials aware of the matter said on Thursday. They added that the turnout initially was lower than expected due to tensions between India and Pakistan, however the numbers have surged since the pause in the conflict. Initially, 40,000 to 50,000 pilgrims visited the shrines, but the footfall has now risen to around 70,000. A total of 73,490 pilgrims reached the four shrines on May 28. According to the state government data, 8,310 pilgrims visited the Yamunotri shrine on May 1, and 13,957 on May 28. A total of 23,868 pilgrims visited Kedarnath on May 27, while the number rose to 25,128 on May 28. On May 1, 6,844 pilgrims visited Gangotri and the turnout almost doubled by May 28 when 13,898 devotees visited the shrine. Badrinath, however, witnessed a slight dip with 23,580 pilgrims on May 4 and 18,935 on May 28. According to the temple priests of Char Dhams, the recent tensions between India and Pakistan and rainfall activities contributed to the dip in daily pilgrim numbers which could have been considerably more. Anand Shukla, temple priest from Kedarnath shrine said, "The Indo-Pakistan tension was the main contributor to the dip in the number of pilgrims in early period of May, and later increased rainfall activity due to early arrival of monsoon also deterred pilgrims. But we are hopeful that the pilgrim numbers will increase in June as people will start visiting the shrine after sowing their kharif crops." Authorities anticipate a higher influx of devotees in June, as favourable weather and school holidays are expected to boost tourism further. Meharban Singh Bisht, district magistrate of Uttarkashi, said, "The revered Char Dham Yatra continues with efficient management, attracting a significant number of pilgrims. Till May 28, over 572,210 pilgrims have visited both Yamunotri and Gangotri Dhams. The traffic on Char Dham yatra route is running smoothly without any hindrance." Around 400 mule and horse operators have been able to take pilgrims daily for darshan to the Yamunotri shrine, taking the tally to 49,538 so far, said officials. Uttarkashi police has also stepped up their efforts to ensure a convenient and smooth yatra for pilgrims. The traffic police teams have been deployed at various bottleneck points on both the Gangotri and Yamunotri highways, while the police personnel are assisting the pilgrims who are unable to reach the temple by picking them up manually. As part of ongoing efforts to ensure fire safety during the Char Dham Yatra, a team from the fire service conducted an inspection of hotels, dhabas, restaurants, and homestays in Gangotri Dham on Wednesday evening....