The number of Amarnath yatris leaving daily for the holy cave shrine of Lord Shiva on Tuesday reduced to three-figure, first time during the pilgrimage this year, with only 885 devotees proceeding for the darshan of ice 'lingam' in south Kashmir.
This timeline details major terror attacks on civilians in Kashmir since 2000. It highlights incidents targeting the Sikh community, Amarnath pilgrims, and other civilians, including a massacre of Kashmiri Pandits. The timeline also notes attacks on security personnel, including the 2019 Pulwama attack.
The principal secretary (home) issued a security advisory, saying pilgrims and tourists 'may curtail their stay' and 'return as soon as possible'.
The General said it was "too early" to take a call on the role of Bangladesh, where a change in government may bring about a change in the relationship between it and India.
A team of doctors, who analysed the causes of death of 17 pilgrims near the cave shrine, have stated in their report that though several pilgrims were unfit for the high altitude travel had been able to secure medical certificates from Registered Medical Practitioners. Mukhtar Ahmad reports.
The annual pilgrimage to the holy cave shrine of Amarnath began on Saturday with over 7,000 pilgrims trekking the 17-km northern Baltel route.
Following the government advisory asking Amarnath yatris, tourists and others to go home, an exodus of sorts started from the Valley on Saturday and continued on Sunday as well. Students have packed their bags, as have tourists and all are leaving the Valley at the height of the tourist season. There is chaos and confusion and amid this the Kashmiri locals are stocking up on essential commodities as they wait for what's in store for them in the future.
It's a different Srinagar from what Rediff.com's Syed Firdaus Ashraf encountered 24 years ago. Tourists throng the Kashmir Valley post-Article 370, azaadi appears dead, and everyone says one man is responsible for this change, so what if his poster is nowhere to be seen.
The two Pakistan-based terrorists of the LeT were killed in an encounter with police at village Nagabal-Derand in Ganderbal district on Sunday night, foiling a plan of the outfit to attack the pilgrims on their return from the cave shrine, a police spokesperson said.
'If you post on social media on an issue like power cuts in Tral, the police will come to your home and tell you to remove your social media post.' 'If you don't, then the local police threaten you that they will book you under PSA.' 'This is happening all the time in Kashmir.'
There were 11,301 tourists when the advisory was issued and only 1,652 of them remained on Saturday.
The deployment of the troops and various orders gave rise to the speculations about some major decision in the offing regarding the Jammu and Kashmir's special status.
The body of a junior commissioned officer was retrieved from a stream in the Poshana area of Surankote late Saturday evening, while the body of a second soldier was found this morning as the water level started receding in the district.
Political leaders and other prominent personalities condemned the attack on Amarnath Yatris in Jammu and Kashmir's Anantnag district on Monday after terrorists open fired at the bus carrying the pilgrims killing seven and injuring 32 others.
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The Supreme Court on Thursday held that it is government's constitutional obligation to provide basic facilities to pilgrims who visit religious places and directed the Centre and Jammu and Kashmir government to ensure proper health and other amenities to Amarnath yatris.
The meeting came in the backdrop of recent developments in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The Jammu and Kashmir government on Friday issued an advisory to Amarnath yatris and tourists asking them to curtail their stay in the Valley, citing security concerns after the Indian Army said that Pakistani terrorists are planning to disrupt the pilgrimage.
The 'pratham pujan' which marks the beginning of the annual pilgrimage to the Himalayan cave shrine of Amarnath was held on Wednesday at Panjtarni, on the Pahalgam-cave shrine trek.
Jammu and Kashmir chief minister, Omar Abdullah has said his government would not curtail the two-month-long annual Amarnath yatra scheduled to begin in June this year.Hard-line separatist leader, Syed Ali Shah Geelani has sought curtailment of the yatra period for what he called 'the preservation of ecology in the Kashmir Himalayas'.
"The tourists desirous of undertaking visit to the state shall be provided with all necessary assistance and logistical support," read the order by the state administration.
This came after the Jammu and Kashmir administration issued an advisory to tourists and Amarnath Yatris to leave the Valley immediately, citing a terror threat.
Leaders across the political spectrum, actors and many others have condemned the Amarnath Yatra terror attack, in which terrorists killed seven and injured 19 others.
The J&K Ranji team is not known to have featured a player from Ladakh till date. The upcoming Ranji Trophy season is scheduled to start in December later this year.
The first batch comprising 1,160 Amarnath yatris was on Friday flagged off by the state tourism minister from Jammu base camp to the holy cave shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas.
The order led to panic in Kashmir which has remained tense for the past few days after the Centre ordered deployment of 100 companies of additional troops in the valley.
Another tragedy struck on the Amarnath pilgrims on Sunday when a bus on its way to Pahalgam fell into a deep gorge.
The first batch of Amarnath yatris from outside the state was welcomed on Wednesday by the police and civil administration amid tight security arrangements at Lakhanpur, the gateway to Jammu and Kashmir.
The chief said that the reason for the fall is because of the combined efforts of NIA, state police and security forces.
The Corps commander said Pakistan and its army were desperate to disrupt peace in Kashmir Valley.
The police claimed the bus driver had violated rules for the pilgrimage.
The governor requested the political leaders to ask their supporters to maintain calm and not believe exaggerated and unfounded rumours being circulated all around.
'It is not about trusting the governor but the ground situation not matching with what he has said,' Jammu and Kashmir People's Movement chief Shah Faesal, who was one of the leaders to meet the governor tells Rediff.com's Prasanna D Zore.
'How you live serves as a much better track record than your timeline,' says Mitali Saran.
The briefing comes ahead of the parliament session beginning Monday.
'The decision of August will have to be taken back. This is our resolve. When it will happen, how it will happen, the judge of our case are the people of this country.'
'A war is being fought in South Kashmir.' 'Do not underestimate your enemy, be sensible and cautious and be prepared for the worst if you choose to move in the region unprotected,' advises Sanjeev Nayyar.
'Irrespective of their politics, people feel happy.' 'One of the best compliments I have received is that I have made it from Kashmir to Karnataka.'
Terrorists on Monday night killed seven Amarnath pilgrims, including six women, and injured 19 others as they struck at a bus in Kashmir's Anantnag district, in the worst attack on the annual pilgrimage since the year 2001. Five of those killed were from Gujarat and two from Maharashtra. Here are the latest updates:
Bereaved families on how they are coping with their tragedies after terrorists gunned down seven tourists from Gujarat and Maharashtra on July 10 in Kashmir
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