The Chhari Mubarak, the holy mace of Lord Shiva on Tuesday reached the shrine of Amarnath in south Kashmir Himalayas, marking the culmination of the two-month annual pilgrimage.
The pilgrims have been asked not to proceed to the cave in view of threat of landslides posed by heavy rains, the officials said adding they have been asked to take shelter in the specially erected shelter-sheds on both the routes.
More than 1.35 lakh pilgrims had darshan of the naturally formed Shivlingam since the start of the annual pilgrimage on June 21.
Undettered by the grenade attack on pilgrims at Baltal, 18th batch of 1,259 pilgrims left for the holy cave shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas on Friday.
The holy lingam (phallic symbol of Shiva) at the shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas melted 10 days back, Chief Executive Officer (Ecology), Shri Amarnath Shrine Board, Arun Kumar told PTI.
A meeting of senior police and civil officers under the chairmanship of Deputy Commissioner, Jammu, Pawan Kotwal was held on Friday to review the yatra arrangements.
The 'charri mubarak', carried by around 500 saints led by its custodian, Mahant Deepinder Giri, reached the shrine, 143 km from Srinagar, around 0845 IST.
Over 1.38 lakh pilgrims have paid obeisance at the holy cave shrine of Amarnath in south Kashmir Himalayas since the pilgrimage started on June 10.
One terrorist was also killed in the gunfight.
The Amarnath yatra was suspended today due to inclement weather conditions in the south Kashmir Himalayas, official sources said in Jammu
With security already being beefed up on Jammu-Pahalgam and Jammu-Baltal routes, the Yatra has remained incident-free so far.
A batch of 429 pilgrims left for the yatra from Jammu. The pilgrims included 32 women and 102 sadhus.
'Based upon the circumstances, the Board decided with heavy heart that it is not advisable to hold and conduct this year's Shri Amarnathji Yatra and expressed its regret to announce the cancellation of Yatra 2020,' the SASB said in a statement.
The government on Thursday said it sincerely wants to have friendly relations with all its neighbouring countries, including Pakistan, but Islamabad will also have to think about its approach.
Shops and business establishments were closed across the Valley while all kinds of transport remained off the roads due to the strike called.
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 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 ongoing pilgrimage to the cave shrine of Amarnath in south Kashmir Himalayas was on Tuesday suspended from Pahalgam and Baltal base camps as heavy rains lashed parts of the Valley, officials said in Srinagar.
The annual pilgrimage to the 3,880 metre high holy cave shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas will resume on Tuesday, they said.
Eleven persons, including 10 devotees, have died due to medical reasons during the ongoing pilgrimage to Amarnath cave shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas.
Fresh protests against arrests in connection with the Kishtwar communal-strife on Tuesday rocked Jammu, Aknoor, Ramnagar and Samba areas even as curfew was relaxed in several towns of the Jammu region.
The advisory comes in the wake of the recent inclement weather along the Nepalganj-Simikot-Hilsa route of the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra through Nepal, and the consequent stranding of pilgrims for over a week.
More than 8,000 pilgrims on Monday paid obeisance at the holy cave shrine.
"As temperatures go up and the snow starts melting, our neighbouring country Pakistan tries to push more and more terrorists into our land. But our army is alert (to scuttle the attempts)," General Officer Commanding of Srinagar-based 15 corps Lt Gen Om Prakash told reporters on the sidelines of a function in Rangreth.
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A bench headed by NGT chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar said that due silence has to be maintained only in front of the ice stalagmite resembling the 'ShivaLinga'.
In wake of the last year's attack, special gadgets and new and better technology have been used to further strengthen the security.
The Manali-Leh National Highway-3 was blocked after heavy rainfall triggered landslide in Himachal Pradesh's Kullu district on Friday.
Amid tight security arrangements, the annual Amarnath yatra commenced from Jammu as the first batch of 1,280 pilgrims left for the cave shrine in the South Kashmir Himalayas.
Drones are being used for aerial security of the Amarnath base camp at Bhagwati Nagar area of Jammu city for the first time while at least 20,000 security personnel have been deployed along the two routes.
Slamming Hurriyat leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani's demand for restricting Amarnath yatra to 30 days, Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh on Saturday.
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:
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