Minimum temperatures have plummeted below the freezing point across the Kashmir Valley, but pilgrims from all over India can be seen taking a dip at Shadipora located at the confluence of the Jhelum river and Sindh stream in the Ganderbal district of central Kashmir these days.
Of these, 6,221 were injured due to pellets, 368 due to bullets, four due to pava shells and 2,449 suffered other injuries, the J-K CM said.
The army foiled a major infiltration bid on Saturday along the Line of Control in Kashmir, killing five terrorists.
Top Hizbul Mujahideen commander Saddam Padder is also believed to be among the slain terrorists.
The encounters took place in Pulwama, Ganderbal and Kupwara districts of the Kashmir valley, a police official said.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday reached out to displaced Kashmiri Pandits, saying he and his family belong to this community, and promised them all help.
The national capital, parts of which reeled under heatwave conditions for the past few days, had some relief on Wednesday with strong winds and partly cloudy skies witnessed during the day.
At least twelve persons, including ten security men were injured in clashes with security forces in Ganderbal, Bandipora, Srinagar and Baramulla districts as authorities detained separatist leader Mohammad Yasin Malik during protests against the recent killing of youths in CRPF firing in Shopian of Kashmir.
Four Amarnath pilgrims died due to cardiac arrest en route to the cave shrine in Kashmir Himalayas over the past three days, taking the death toll in this year's pilgrimage to 15, officials said in Srinagar on Sunday.
A rescue team recovered the body of Delhi resident Shailendra, 30, from the landslide-hit area along the Baltal route of the pilgrimage on Wednesday, a police official said.
The terrorists pumped bullets into the two troopers at close range before disappearing into the bylanes of the congested locality
An army official said the slain youths were "hardcore terrorists" who used a lot of ammunition and grenades against the security forces during the encounter.
A batch of 429 pilgrims left for the yatra from Jammu. The pilgrims included 32 women and 102 sadhus.
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.
Two pilgrims died of cardiac arrest en route to the 3,880 m high holy cave shrine of Amarnath even as one lakh pilgrims paid obeisance at the shrine, officials said in Srinagar on Friday.
'Both sides have agreed that the overall situation should be handled in a responsible manner'
According to reports, the jawans belonged to 13 Rashtriya Rifles.
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.
Reeling under strict restrictions with no access to communication since August 5 when the Centre announced its decision to end Jammu and Kashmir's special status under Article 370 and bifurcate the state into two union territories, the people in the Valley have been facing a hair-raising challenge of finding a hairdresser to have their unkempt beards trimmed and unruly locks chopped.
Zojila Pass, at a height of 11,516 feet above sea level, connects the picturesque Kashmir Valley with the cold Indus valley desert through the 434-km long Srinagar-Leh road.
Rahul Gandhi visits the Mata Kheer Bhawani temple and the Hazratbal shrine in Kashmir.
The report published in the gazettes of India appeared in local newspapers on Monday and showed that Habba Kadal seat in Kashmir division and Suchetgarh seat in Jammu province had been restored.
Police have filed a case against the army personnel, an official said, adding that records kept at a police station were also damaged.
Curfew remained in force in the five districts of Anantnag, Kulgam, Pulwama, Shopian and Baramulla.
Security agencies braced for a march called by separatists on Monday.
Protests against the killing of four people in firing by Border Security Force personnel erupted across Jammu and Kashmir on Friday during which 40 people including 19 security personnel were injured in clashes, stone-pelting and cane-charge.
Chinese troops have been camping in the Finger area for over three months now and have even started fortifying their bases there with construction of bunkers and sangars.
Mobs defied curfew to indulge in stone-pelting leaving 15 people, including eight security personnel, injured in the incidents.
'India's behaviour violated agreements...It's a serious military provocation'
Tullamulla village, 27 kilometre from Srinagar in Ganderbal district where the Kashmiri Pandits' holiest shrine is located, wore a festive look despite the overnight heavy rains in Kashmir.
'The Indian Army is there to give a second chance to any youth who accepts his mistakes and wants to surrender and come back to the mainstream. We, the uniformed forces, are here to save lives and not to take lives. The system, the entire administration, will facilitate not only their surrender but also ensure that they are well integrated back into the mainstream,' Lt Gen Y K Joshi said.
The Indian troops deployed there are mentally prepared for tackling the weather and terrain. In contrast, the Chinese troops deployed along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) are not used to these conditions as they have been brought from mainland China and are not accustomed to high altitude extreme cold weather conditions.
Amidst Covid scare, hundreds of pilgrims paid obeisance at the famous Ragnya Devi temple in Jammu and Kashmir's Ganderbal district on Friday for the annual Kheer Bhawani mela, praying for peace in the union territory and for the pandemic to end.
Fresh snowfall disrupted normal life in Jammu and Kashmir, where an avalanche warning was issued in five districts, higher reaches and tribal areas of Himachal Pradesh and the Garhwal region of Uttarakhand on Monday.
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.
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.
In a bid to enhance preparedness for disaster management among government officials involved in management of the annual Amarnath Yatra starting July 2, National Disaster Management Authority has planed to conduct a three-day mock drill.
Looking into the current situation on the China boarder, IOC has stocked up enough winter-grade fuel for the region. With army movements increasing, the demand for this fuel is expected to increase multifold from the 350 metric tonnes last winter.
This classification of districts is to be followed by states and union terrotories till a week post May 3, when the second phase of lockdown will end, for containment operations.
A government middle school in Shopian's Padarpora was set ablaze by unidentified people and on Sunday. The government high school in Pulwama was razed to the ground in a similar manner.
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