Who was Swami Somdevji and what information did he provide to the Madrasi sannyasi in Chapter 31?

As described in Chapter 31, Swami Somdevji was a swami from Haridwar who was present in Shirdi when the Madrasi sannyasi, Vijayananda, arrived. Their meeting happened naturally within the assembly of devotees. When Vijayananda inquired about the journey to Mansarovar, Swami Somdevji informed him that it was about five hundred miles away and fraught with difficulties. He warned of heavy snowfall, frequent changes in language, and the hardships faced by outsiders. This discouraging news, as the chapter notes, caused the sannyasi to become dejected and immersed in worry, setting the stage for his subsequent interaction with Sai Baba.