SanKash, an India-based travel fintech, recently announced that over 400,000 registrations for Char Dham Yatra were received this year. Most of the bookings were done by young people in the age group of 25 to 45, typically as a present for parents, family members, or themselves. Compared to 2019, there is an overall increase of 35-40% in pilgrim registrations, particularly from locations such Delhi, Punjab, Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Karnataka.
The Char Dham Yatra is a spiritual pilgrimage to four Hindu shrines located in Uttarakhand. It includes temples of Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath, and Badrinath, and is a revered journey among Hindus. Out of the four lakh registrations, SanKash enabled over 100,000 bookings through online and offline travel operators that offer flexible travel payment options. People can choose to pay in installments over 12-months, with six-months at no extra cost.
SanKash has developed a proprietary AI and ML-powered logic engine that allows it to aggregate all BNPL providers, giving smooth payment options to customers, and enabling cross-selling potential for respective merchants. Abhilasha Negi, the Co-founder and Head Partner Support & Training of SanKash, commented on the announcement, “Earlier, pilgrim travel was an aspirational journey for people visiting with elderly parents or middle-aged couples going for pilgrimage with their kids. Post-pandemic, there is an uptick in the interest of spiritual and religious tourism amongst young people. We have seen 4 lakh registrations and out of that 100,000 travellers have booked their Yatra utilizing Travel Now Pay Later and most of the bookings have been from the age group of 25-40.”
As per the government mandate, it is mandatory to complete registration before travelling to Uttarakhand for Char Dham Yatra. So far, over 4.17 lakh have been registered, and the tourist department has begun registration procedure for Gangotri and Yamunotri Dham.
SanKash is a team that develops and provides financial services related to travel to make it accessible and affordable for all. Its key focus is to design products and solutions that help travelers make payments easily, with flexible payment facilities for merchants, lenders and customers alike. Founded by Akash Dahiya and Abhilasha Negi, SanKash offers buy now pay later options as a travel payment solution that increases trip value and helps travelers take decisions faster.
