The Jammu and Kashmir government has reiterated that there was no direction from the Supreme Court about the construction of a road to the Himalayan cave shrine of Amarnath. The statement comes in the wake of a controversy generated by some Jammu-based political parties, which claimed that the SC has issued a direction for the construction of the road before the onset of winter.
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.
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 annual Amarnath yatra to the 3,880-metre high cave shrine in the south Kashmir Himalayas will commence on June 28 and culminate, as per the tradition, on the day of Raskha Bandhan festival on August 22, officials said.
Heavy rains Monday morning rendered the 46-km Pahalgam-cave and 14-km Baltal-cave routes slippery and dangerous.
Till July 7, nearly 82,000 devotees had paid their obeisance at the shrine.
The annual pilgrimage to the 3,880 metre high holy cave shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas will resume on Tuesday, they said.
Expressing grief over the Uttarakhand tragedy, the moderate Hurriyat Conference on Friday demanded restricting Amarnath Yatra to an earlier schedule to safeguard the fragile environment of Himalayas.
The issue of pilgrimages to the Amarnath and Vaishnodevi shrines, both located in Jammu and Kashmir, was discussed at a high-level meeting attended by Union ministers G Kishan Reddy and Jitendra Singh and senior officials of the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Jammu and Kashmir administration. The Amarnath Yatra is likely to commence on July 21.
'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 Yatri Niwas Bhagwati Nagar in Jammu serves as the main base camp for the pilgrims from across the country.
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.
With less than 10 days left for the start of annual Amarnath Yatra, the Centre and the Jammu and Kashmir government said there is a terror threat to the nearly two-month-long pilgrimage and that additional security forces are being deployed to provide safety.
The pilgrimage will be a big security challenge for the government as Jammu and Kashmir has been witnessing a number of targeted killings by terrorists in recent weeks.
Three persons were killed and 19 others injured after a cloudburst struck near the base camp of Amarnath yatra along the shorter 16-km Baltal route to the cave shrine in central Kashmir's Ganderbal district, officials said on Saturday.
A cloudburst hit near the base camp of the Amarnath shrine in south Kashmir.
Concerned over the development, the security agencies reworked their strategy, especially keeping in mind the Amarnath Yatra beginning June 30.
A massive manhunt has been launched for the four terrorists
'The Pahalgam terror attacks and the conflict that followed were a big blow to local tourism.' 'And just when things were starting to go back to normal, the floods, caused by heavy rain, spoiled all chances of a bounce-back this season.'
The CM apprised the home minister about the steps taken to maintain peace in the Kashmir Valley
Another tragedy struck on the Amarnath pilgrims on Sunday when a bus on its way to Pahalgam fell into a deep gorge.
Rediff.com presents some scintillating photographs of the ongoing Lord Amarnath yatra.
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.
The home minister will also review the preparation for the annual Amarnath pilgrimage set to start on June 29.
http://www.rediff.com/news/interview/why-kashmiri-students-are-throwing-stones/20170505.htm
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:
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday said there was no increased threat perception to this year's Amarnath yatra compared to previous years and fears of attack as reported in the media were "gross exaggeration".
A fresh batch of 6,162 pilgrims, including 1,360 women and 222 Sadhus on Monday left the winter capital for the twin base camps of Baltal and Pahalgam in Kashmir, officials said.
A series of guidelines have been issued to pilgrims undertaking the Amarnath Yatra this year, including asking women not to wear sarees while trekking, by the shrine board which organises the two-month long pilgrimage.
the Mahant said the entire Hindu community was in a state of shock over the media reports suggesting that this year the Shivalingam (phallic symbol of Lord Shiva) had been raised manually.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday held three back-to-back meetings with top officials of the security establishment to assess the prevailing situation in Jammu and Kashmir, including the recent killings of civilians, as well as reviewed arrangements for the forthcoming Amarnath Yatra for which the UT administration will provide RFID tags to every pilgrim.
Over five thousand pilgrims who left for the holy cave of Amarnath on Tuesday morning from north Kashmir's Baltel route had to abort the arduous uphill trek as the weather turned worse.
More than 11000 pilgrims left from the two base camps for the yatra. Officials said that over 6000 pilgrims left for the cave shrine from north Kashmir Baltel base camp while 5000 left from the south Kashmir Nunwan base camp early Thursday morning.
The busy administrative schedule is being cited as the reason for holding of polls in October.
Police said 5 critically injured persons have been referred to Srinagar for treatment.
The Yatra has been suspended as there has been snowfall at several places.
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.
One terrorist was also killed in the gunfight.
