Vaishno Devi Navratri 2026 in Numbers: 3.81 Lakh Pilgrims in Nine Days, and the Day-by-Day Footfall

3.81 lakh. That is how many pilgrims paid obeisance at the Mata Vaishno Devi cave shrine from 11 October to 2 pm on 19 October 2026, according to a senior officer quoted by PTI.

The eight full days

Date	Pilgrims
11 Oct	47,574
12 Oct	48,400
13 Oct	46,558
14 Oct	41,961
15 Oct	39,951
16 Oct	41,750
17 Oct	48,500
18 Oct	47,700

These add up to about 3.62 lakh, the figure officials gave for the first eight days of Navratri; the remainder is Monday's count up to 2 pm. More than 20,000 pilgrims had set out towards the shrine by Monday afternoon.

What the curve shows

Footfall opened near 47,500, dipped to just under 40,000 on 15 October, and climbed back to 48,500 on 17 October. The report says numbers were expected to rise further around Dussehra. In Jammu, over 2 lakh pilgrims visited the Mata Kali (Bawe Wali Mata) temple, per the same report.

How the shrine managed it

Pilgrims could use helicopters, battery-operated cars, ponies and pithus. Differently-abled devotees get free pony and battery-car services, priority darshan and help desks. Drinking water, sanitation and medical aid are available with emergency staff at key points on the track.

For a sense of how quiet things were before the festival, see our report on Katra's quietest month and our Navratri day-one report. Some later reports put the nine-day total above 4 lakh; the dated figures here are the PTI snapshot.

Source: The Tribune / PTI, 19 October 2026.