Skip to content
The white and red shikharas of the Daksh Mahadev Temple in Kankhal, Haridwar, with lion statues at the gate
Daksh Mahadev Temple, Kankhal. Photo: Aashishraja7, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Haridwar Kumbh 2027 · Ghats

Kankhal and Daksh Ghat, Haridwar

KumbhMela.info Editorial TeamChecked on Fri 16 Oct 2026

Kankhal is one of Haridwar's Panch Tirth, the city's five holy places, and home to the Daksh Mahadev Temple. According to tradition, this is where King Daksha Prajapati held the yagna at which Sati gave up her life.

EvergreenChecked on Fri 16 Oct 2026

The place and its traditions do not change from year to year. Official detail on the Kankhal ghats is thin, and whether they are used for bathing on the 2027 Kumbh days is not announced.

There is a bathing ghat on the Ganga at the edge of the temple, known as Daksh Ghat. Official sources do not describe the Kankhal ghats in detail, so this page keeps to what we could confirm.

Kankhal at a glance

  • Where

    Kankhal, Haridwar, about 4 to 6 km from Haridwar railway station, the official Kumbh website says. One of the city's Panch Tirth.1,2

  • River and bank

    Daksh Ghat, on the Ganga at the edge of the Daksh Mahadev Temple. The official Kumbh map marks it beside the temple.3,4

  • Known for

    The Daksh Mahadev Temple and Sati Kund, where by tradition King Daksha held the yagna at which Sati gave up her life.5,6

  • Steps and access

    Not published yet. No official source describes the Kankhal ghats or their steps and railings.

  • Nearest official help point

    Proposed on the official Kumbh map: a lost-and-found point in sector Daksh Dweep-05, about 300 m from the temple in a straight line.7,4

  • Kumbh 2027 status

    Mahashivratri, Saturday 6 March 2027, is the first Amrit Snan (Provisional). Use of the Kankhal ghats is not announced.8,9

On a Kumbh day

  • Saturday 6 March 2027 is both Mahashivratri, one of the temple's biggest days, and the first Amrit Snan of the Haridwar Kumbh (Provisional).
  • The official Kumbh map proposes a lost-and-found point in sector Daksh Dweep-05, about 300 m from the temple in a straight line, and lists Kankhal Police Station.
Sources for these facts (9)
  1. Haridwar Kumbh Mela administration, Government of Uttarakhand: Temples (Directories), Haridwar Kumbh 2027 official website
  2. Nagar Nigam Haridwar, Government of Uttarakhand: About Haridwar
  3. Outlook India (Outlook Publishing India): The Holy Waters Of Haridwar (2022)
  4. Haridwar Kumbh Mela administration, Government of Uttarakhand: Interactive Mela Map data (points of interest), Haridwar Kumbh 2027 official website
  5. Incredible India, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India: Daksh Mahadev Temple and Sati Kund
  6. Uttarakhand Tourism Development Board, Government of Uttarakhand: Haridwar (2025)
  7. Haridwar Kumbh Mela administration, Government of Uttarakhand: Lost and Found Centers (Directories), Haridwar Kumbh 2027 official website
  8. Press Trust of India (via The Week): Dates announced for bathing festivals during Ardh Kumbh Mela in Haridwar (2026)
  9. Haridwar Kumbh Mela administration, Government of Uttarakhand: Snan and Events · Haridwar Kumbh 2027 (official website)

The Daksh Prajapati story

According to tradition, King Daksha Prajapati, the father of Sati, held a great yagna here and did not invite Lord Shiva, Sati’s husband. Sati went uninvited, was insulted by her father, and gave up her life in the yagna fire. In the story, Shiva’s anger follows; Daksha is killed and later brought back to life with a goat’s head.

Uttarakhand Tourism says the Daksha Mahadev Temple is said to stand where the yagna took place. The Ministry of Tourism’s Incredible India site identifies the Sati Kund in the temple with the yagna kund, and says the present temple was built in 1810 by Queen Dhankaur and renovated in 1962. We have not found a second official source for those dates.

A PTI report from Shravan 2025 gives a local belief: that Lord Shiva stays in Kankhal for the whole month of Shravan, keeping a promise to King Daksha. The same report names other Shiva temples in Kankhal, such as Daridra Bhanjan and Tilbhandeshwar.

What you do here

Darshan at Daksh Mahadev

A Shiva temple with the Sati Kund, which Incredible India identifies with the yagna kund of the story. It is busiest in Shravan, on Mahashivratri and in Navratri.1

The dip and the kalash

At Daksh Ghat people bathe in the Ganga and fill a kalash with river water to offer to Lord Shiva in the temple, a 2022 Outlook feature describes.2

Sources for these cards (2)
  1. Incredible India, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India: Daksh Mahadev Temple and Sati Kund
  2. Outlook India (Outlook Publishing India): The Holy Waters Of Haridwar (2022)

Daksh Ghat and bathing at Kankhal

A 2022 Outlook travel feature describes Daksh Ghat at the edge of the temple, where people bathe in the Ganga and fill a kalash with river water to carry into the temple as an offering to Lord Shiva.

We found no official description of the Kankhal ghats: how many there are, their names, or their steps and railings. Ask locally before you go, especially if you are travelling with older family members.

Kankhal during the Kumbh

Nothing about Kankhal has been announced for 2027 yet. These points come from the temple’s known busy times and the Kumbh calendar.

  • Mahashivratri is one of the temple’s biggest days, according to the Ministry of Tourism. In 2027 Mahashivratri falls on Saturday 6 March, which is also the first Amrit Snan of the Haridwar Kumbh (Provisional). See the 6 March guide.
  • In Shravan the Daksh Prajapati Mahadev temple complex draws a steady flow of Kanwar pilgrims, as PTI reported in 2025. Shravan falls outside the Kumbh season.
  • Whether the Kankhal ghats are used for bathing on Kumbh days, and how traffic will run between Kankhal and Har Ki Pauri, is not announced.

How Kankhal fits a Kumbh visit

Kankhal is part of Haridwar’s wider holy area, not the main Kumbh ghat. If you want to visit the Daksh Mahadev Temple, choose a day that is not an Amrit Snan, and do not try to fit it into the same morning as a bath at Har Ki Pauri.

Where it is

Haridwar: main ghats, temples and arrival pointsGangaGanga canal12345671 kmN
Haridwar: main ghats, temples and arrival points
  1. 1Har Ki Pauri and BrahmakundGhat
  2. 2Mansa Devi TempleTemple
  3. 3Chandi Devi TempleTemple
  4. 4Maya Devi TempleTemple
  5. 5Daksh Mahadev Temple, KankhalTemple · This page
  6. 6Haridwar railway stationRailway
  7. 7Haridwar Roadways bus stationBus

A guide to where places are, not a route plan. During the mela, roads and ghats open and close by the official plan; follow police and mela directions. How to use the official Haridwar map.

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Some temple locations from Wikidata (CC0). openstreetmap.org/copyright

Nearby

The entrance of the Maya Devi Temple in Haridwar, with a painted panel of the goddess above the doorwayMaya Devi TempleAbout 3.5 km awayChandi Devi Temple on the rocky top of Neel Parvat above Haridwar, seen from belowChandi Devi TempleAbout 3.5 km awayMansa Devi Temple on top of Bilwa Parvat, Haridwar, with the ropeway climbing the wooded hillMansa Devi TempleAbout 4.4 km awayMorning light over the Ganga at Har Ki Pauri, HaridwarBrahmakundAbout 4.6 km away

All ghats and placesWhere to stay nearby

Distances are in a straight line between map points, not walking routes.

Questions people ask

Can you bathe in the Ganga at Kankhal?

Yes, people bathe at Daksh Ghat by the temple, as a 2022 Outlook feature describes. We found no official description of the Kankhal ghats, and their use on the 2027 Kumbh days is not announced.

Will Kankhal be busy on Mahashivratri 2027?

Expect it to be. Mahashivratri is one of the temple’s biggest days, and on Saturday 6 March 2027 it is also the first Amrit Snan of the Haridwar Kumbh, which is Provisional.

Where next

How to reachTrains, buses, roads and the last stretch
Where to stayAreas, camps and what to check
First visitA simple order for getting ready
Ghats and placesWhere the bathing happens

Sources

6 sources · checked 16 Oct 2026
  1. About Haridwar · Nagar Nigam Haridwar, Government of Uttarakhand ·
  2. Haridwar · Uttarakhand Tourism Development Board, Government of Uttarakhand ·
  3. Daksh Mahadev Temple and Sati Kund · Incredible India, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India ·
  4. Kanwar Yatra ends; 4.5 cr pilgrims reached Haridwar in 15 days · Press Trust of India (via The Week) ·
  5. The Holy Waters Of Haridwar · Outlook India (Outlook Publishing India) ·
  6. Dates announced for bathing festivals during Ardh Kumbh Mela in Haridwar · Press Trust of India (via The Week) ·