The Amarnath yatra resumed on Friday, after it remained suspended for the last three days due to inclement weather, with a batch of 1,860 pilgrims leaving from Jammu for their onward journey to the cave shrine in south Kashmir.
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.
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.
After being delayed by landslides for two days, pilgrims undertaking the Amarnath yatra resumed their journey on Saturday.
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".
The annual Amarnath Yatra began on Thursday as a batch of about 2,750 pilgrims left the base camp in Nunwan, Jammu-Kashmir, for the cave shrine housing the naturally formed ice-lingam in the south Kashmir Himalayas.
Heavy rains were lashing Pahalgam and Baltal sections of Amarnath routes and tracks have become slippery.
According to the officials, fresh batches of pilgrims were not allowed to leave Jammu to embark on their yatra due to closure of the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway.
Voicing concern over nearly 100 deaths in the course of the Amarnath Yatra, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday demanded extension of the pilgrimage period and proper medical facilities and accommodation for the pilgrims.
Around 6,400 security personnel have been positioned all along the route to the Amarnath cave shrine to foil terrorrist attacks
The Amarnath yatra was suspended today due to inclement weather conditions in the south Kashmir Himalayas, official sources said in Jammu
Over 1.43 lakh intending pilgrims have registered themselves for this year's Amarnath Yatra beginning from July 2.
Mahant Deependra Giri, the custodian of the holy mace, accompanied by over 100 'sadhus' reached the shrine with the Charri Mubarak this morning, Shri Amarnath Shrine Board officials said.
The yatra to the cave shrine of Amarnath in Kashmir, situated at an altitude of 3,880 mt, was suspended from both the routes -- Pahalgam and Baltal -- on Tuesday as heavy rains rendered the ardous tracks slippery, sources said.
The army has received inputs that terrorists might try to disrupt the Amarnath Yatra scheduled to commence from June 28, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Northern Command, Lt General K T Parnaik said Monday.
The hard-line separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani on Friday threatened agitation 'in case the annual Amarnath yatra is not restricted to the original 15 day schedule.'
Art of Living founder Sri Sri Ravishankar on Tuesday said there was no pressure on the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board on deciding the duration of the Amarnath yatra, which was shortened keeping in view the safety of the pilgrims.
Tension gripped the north Kashmir Baltel base camp of the annual Amarnath yatra following clashes between security forces and locals on Thursday evening.
Anantnag, Kulgam and Pulwama are already under curfew following the death of three youths on Monday in clashes between the Central Reserve Police Force and stone-pelters. Anantnag and Pahalgam towns fall on the Jammu-Pahalgam pilgrimage route. But those taking the North Kashmir Baltal route to reach the cave shrine have to pass through Bijbehara, Awantipore and Pampore towns in the south.
Official sources said the annual pilgrimage to the cave shrine in south Kashmir will now begin on July 20 instead of July 29 as announced earlier and will end on August 31.
Jammu and Kashmir does not have an elected dispensation since the Peoples Democratic Party-Bharatiya Janata Party coalition government fell apart in June 2018.
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 C-17 Globemaster can airlift around 230 passengers in one go and takes less time to fly between different places.
The ongoing Amarnath yatra was suspended from Jammu on Saturday due to inclement weather and to control heavy rush of devotees thronging the 13,500 feet cave shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas.
Almost 3,000 Border Security Force personnel have been airlifted to Kashmir from New Delhi to guard devotees embarking on the Amarnath yatra, that commences from July 1, and protecting the route.
Amarnath Yatra was on Friday suspended on Baltal and Pahalgam routes due to incessant rainfall since Thursday night.
The Amarnath yatra was suspended on Saturday due to closure of the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway in the wake of a landslide triggered by heavy rains in Udhampur district of the state.
Both the Pahalgam and Baltal routes to the 3,880-metre high cave shrine were rendered slippery and dangerous.
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:
The Corps commander said Pakistan and its army were desperate to disrupt peace in Kashmir Valley.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad on Tuesday asked Art of Living founder and Shri Amarnath Shrine Board member, Sri Sri Ravishankar, to keep away from the "boiling issue" of curtailment of Amarnath yatra, saying otherwise he will "burn his hands"
The two-month-long annual Amarnath Yatra to the Himalayan Hindu cave shrine has started with thousands of pilgrims proceeding towards the shrine from north and south Kashmir routes.
Concerned over the development, the security agencies reworked their strategy, especially keeping in mind the Amarnath Yatra beginning June 30.
The annual Amarnath Yatra began on Wednesday under a tight security cover, with the first batch of 1,272 pilgrims leaving the Jammu base camp for the cave shrine, located at an altitude of 3,338-metres.A cavalcade of 53 vehicles carrying the devotees under tight security was flagged off by Tourism and Culture Minister Nawang Rigzin Jora from the Amarnath base camp at Bagwatinagar Yatri Niwas at approximately 5 am. Security is being provided by the Central Reserve Police Force
The crisis over the start date of the Amarnath Yatra deepened with the Vishwa Hindu Parishad showing no signs of relenting and a top VHP leader on Tuesday stating that Bharatiya Janata Party leader Uma Bharti will lead a contingent of devotees to the cave shrine on June 3. The board has left sadhus all across India angry by disobeying him, he added.
The Jammu and Kashmir government has set aside 40 hectares of forest land for use by the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board during the two month long annual pilgrimage to the cave shrine as per the agreement reached between the government panel and the Amarnath Yatra Sangarash Samiti which spearheaded two month long agitation in Jammu.
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.
Defying apprehensions of the horrific April 22 terror Pahalgam attack casting a shadow on the Amarnath Yatra this year, hundreds of pilgrims from various parts of the country lined up at the registration centre in Jammu on the first day.
The two-month long annual Hindu pilgrimage to the Himalayan Cave Shrine of Amarnath, which was officially scheduled to begin on Saturday was postponed following incessant rains all along the north and south of Kashmir.
There are intelligence inputs which suggest threat of terrorist attacks on Amarnath pilgrims, Lok Sabha was informed on Tuesday.
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