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.
Amarnath Yatra Sangharsh Samiti (AYSS) on Wednesday announced the launch of civil disobedience movement in Jammu region.
Tension gripped the north Kashmir Baltel base camp of the annual Amarnath yatra following clashes between security forces and locals on Thursday evening.
The decision to revoke the order was taken by the state cabinet which met in Srinagar under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad.
Saturday's batch left in a fleet of 126 vehicles, including 89 buses, under proper escort, they said, adding the motorcade of vehicles have already crossed Batote around 0940 hours and would be stopped at Chanderkote near Ramban as road ahead is blocked.
On the Opposition's poll promise of statehood restoration, Shah said, "I want to ask Farooq Abdullah and Rahul Gandhi, who is going to restore the statehood. You cannot give it back. Why are you misleading the public?"
Three persons, including two devotees, were killed and over 10,000 pilgrims stranded as heavy rain lashed parts of Jammu and Kashmir prompting authorities to suspend the annual pilgrimage to the holy cave shrine of Amarnath on Sunday.
Mohinder Amarnath feels irrational scheduling of the Indian Premier League was a major factor in India's debacle in the Twenty20 World Cup and also questioned the purpose of India's short tour to the West Indies.
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.
Shri Amarnath Shrine Board Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Naveen Choudhary on Saturday said, "from 7th May on wards, the interested Yatris can reserve their heli-seats for Amarnath yatra through the web based on-line Reservation System by logging on to the Shrine Board's website".
The struggle of Kashmiris for autonomy is one thing. The idea of trifurcating the state -- a Muslim Valley, a Hindu Jammu and a Buddhist Ladakh -- will undercut the very idea of India. India said `no' to nationhood on the basis of religion at the time of independence, and this would also apply to statehood. If it accepts this, or is forced to accept it, it could be a downhill journey for a multi-faith, multi-cultural society, and have a bearing on the future of India.
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'.
Restrictions have been imposed in five police station areas of Srinagar, a police official said.
The yatra from Bhagwati Nagar base camp was suspended on Wednesday, for the second time within a week. Although officials said the pilgrims were stopped at Jammu due to heavy rush at the base camps in Kashmir, sources said the prevailing law-and-order situation in the wake of violent protests across Kashmir Valley prompted authorities to stop the pilgrims as a precautionary measure.
A record number of about 1.6 lakh devotees paid their obeisance at the 3,880-m-high holy cave shrine of Amarnath in the first five days of the yatra, official sources said.
The 45-day annual Hindu pilgrimage to the Himalayan shrine of Amarnath ended on Saturday after the traditional puja inside the shrine. The Shravan Purnima, which coincides with Raksha Bandhan festival, witnessed religious fervour with the arrival at the cave shrine situated at a height of 3,880 metres after a night halt at Panjtarni.
Shri Amarnath Sangarsh Samiti on Saturday said it will boycott the all-party delegation's visit to Jammu alleging that three of its members, including National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah and People's Democratic Party chief Mehbooba Mufti, were "responsible for the land row".
Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray has demanded building of a 'Amarnath House' or 'Vaishnodevi House' for Hindus on the lines of 'Haj House' in Mumbai for Muslims.
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.
Two pilgrims and a woman tourist from Delhi died of cardiac arrest enroute the holy cave shrine of Amarnath in South Kashmir, taking the death toll in the ongoing pilgrimage to five, even as nearly 80,000 pilgrims paid obeisance at the cave shrine since July 2.
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 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.
Use of plastic bags has been banned in Pahalgam, Baltal and en route to the Amarnath cave shrine as part of a master plan to check environmental damage and introduce eco-friendly facililies for pilgrims
The month-and-a-half annual yatra to the Himalayan cave shrine of Amarnath took off on Wednesday morning as the first batch of pilgrims left for the shrine from the two base camps: north Kashmir Baltal and south Kashmir Pahalgam amid tight security.
The pilgrimage to the holy cave shrine of Amarnath via north Kashmir Baltel route was halted on Thursday evening after flash floods washed away a major portion of a bridge in Ganderbal district.
Gulmarg was the coldest place in Kashmir on Sunday.
A batch of 429 pilgrims left for the yatra from Jammu. The pilgrims included 32 women and 102 sadhus.
Sixteen Amarnath pilgrims were killed and 16 others injured when a truck carrying them plunged into a deep gorge in Samba district of Jammu and Kashmir late on Thursday night.
More than 1.35 lakh pilgrims had darshan of the naturally formed Shivlingam since the start of the annual pilgrimage on June 21.
With this batch as many as 53,995 yatris from different parts of the country have left for the cave shrine since the commencement of yatra on June 10.
Several measure have been taken to beef up security for the pilgrimage.
After being delayed by landslides for two days, pilgrims undertaking the Amarnath yatra resumed their journey on Saturday.
State-owned BSNL has become the first telecom firm to launch mobile services at the Holy Amarnath cave, as well as on the two routes of the yatra.
Greg Chappell and Tom Moody are the others in contention for the job of India's cricket coach.
Five pilgrims, including two women, died enroute the 3,880 metre high holy cave shrine of Amarnath in south Kashmir Himalayas, taking the toll during the ongoing yatra to six, police said on Wednesday.
The first batch of over 12,000 yatris (pilgrims) left for the cave shrine located at 14,500 feet above the sea level from the two base camps.
'With all outlets of public expression virtually choked for the last five years, suppressed anger and frustration is looking for an opening via the ballot box.' 'There is no escape from the inevitability of the 'Engineer Rashid' factor surfacing in a big enough way to upset everyone's applecart,' alerts Mohammad Sayeed Malik, the veteran commentator on Kashmir affairs.
