The Supreme Court on Thursday held that it is government's constitutional obligation to provide basic facilities to pilgrims who visit religious places and directed the Centre and Jammu and Kashmir government to ensure proper health and other amenities to Amarnath yatris.
"It is heartening to see us, common people, being acknowledged. 'Achha lag raha hai'," Ram Chand Kumar, a mason who hails from Bihar and has been working on the site for the last 5-6 months, hailed the prime minister's gesture.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday inaugurated the first phase of the Kashi Vishwanath Dham in Varanasi, a project which is spread over five lakh square feet and connects the temple premises to the River Ganga besides providing several facilities to devotees.
Political leaders and other prominent personalities condemned the attack on Amarnath Yatris in Jammu and Kashmir's Anantnag district on Monday after terrorists open fired at the bus carrying the pilgrims killing seven and injuring 32 others.
Taking to Twitter, Modi said that the Kashi Vishwanath Dham project will add to Kashi's spiritual vibrancy.
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.
'We do not want Kashmiri Pandits to migrate from Kashmir.'
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.
Thanks to the flaws in the way it is implementing dynamic pricing, the Indian Railways is losing its premium travel base faster than ever before, say RailYatri's Manish Rathi and Kapil Raizada.
The first batch of Amarnath yatris from outside the state was welcomed on Wednesday by the police and civil administration amid tight security arrangements at Lakhanpur, the gateway to Jammu and Kashmir.
The mega corridor, whose foundation stone was laid by Modi on March 8, 2019, connects the main temple with Lalita Ghat via a corridor, and grand gateways and ornamental arches have been built in heritage architecture style in four directions, facing the ancient temple at its core.
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 Amarnath pilgrimage resumed on Monday after remaining suspended for three days following flash floods that claimed 15 lives, while the Jammu and Kashmir administration said it would get a clear picture by Tuesday about the damage.
'Whenever we were low in energy and wanted support, we turned to him.' 'He has done a lot for me.' 'He did not leave any stone unturned to launch me.'
'The government and railways are looking after us, but I just want to get home.'
The meeting came in the backdrop of recent developments in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The Jammu and Kashmir government on Friday issued an advisory to Amarnath yatris and tourists asking them to curtail their stay in the Valley, citing security concerns after the Indian Army said that Pakistani terrorists are planning to disrupt the pilgrimage.
With Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani reportedly planning another rath yatra, the Congress on Monday attacked the BJP patriarch and hoped that this yatra did not create 'discord'. "There is yet another yatra by the eternal yatri, the Bhishm Pitamah of the BJP, L K Advani. The ambition of the yatri knows no bounds. We hope this is not a journey of vendetta, hatred and creating discord," said party spokesman Abhishek Singhvi.
Shah said that the people of the country will decide about the principal opposition party to BJP in the 2024 polls and they have not given this label to any party.
Restrictions have been imposed in five police station areas of Srinagar, a police official said.
"The tourists desirous of undertaking visit to the state shall be provided with all necessary assistance and logistical support," read the order by the state administration.
Their enthusiasm evident in the loud chants of 'Bam Bam Bhole'.
This came after the Jammu and Kashmir administration issued an advisory to tourists and Amarnath Yatris to leave the Valley immediately, citing a terror threat.
'The Governor himself had clarified matters on (Article) 35A yesterday in Baramulla and the day before in Srinagar,' the statement added.
The inauguration of the state-of-the-art infrastructure surrounding the historic Kashi Vishwanath Temple near the iconic Dashashwamedh Ghat comes ahead of the assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh early next year.
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 sources said two other people, suspected to be overground workers for militants, have also been detained for questioning.
Kashmiris protest against the killing of Amarnath pilgrims.
The DGCA advised airlines to remain ready to operate additional flights from the Srinagar airport if the need arises.
His debut movie may have sunk without a trace, but Aayush Sharma is much loved by the Khan khandaan.
Leaders across the political spectrum, actors and many others have condemned the Amarnath Yatra terror attack, in which terrorists killed seven and injured 19 others.
Each yatri had to tell more than his and her story. Heaven it was once which has turned into a burial ground for the living. With all the advancements in technology, all that glib talk of disaster management, the towering Indian conquering the world with his brilliance and high-end acumen, the fact is we failed our people in crisis. Ultimately the armed forces had to be deployed, who emerged as the new gods. Tarun Vijay returns from Gauri Kund with this grim account
The J&K Ranji team is not known to have featured a player from Ladakh till date. The upcoming Ranji Trophy season is scheduled to start in December later this year.
Expressing "shock" over the growing number of Amarnath pilgrims' death, which has risen to 97, the Supreme Court on Monday asked the Jammu and Kashmir government to immediately deploy medical aid teams for the yatris.
After taking a few knocks, the Tata group-owned no-frills hotel chain is putting its expansion plans on the fast track.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a money-laundering case against renowned cardiologist Dr Naresh Trehan and others in connection with allotment of land for the Medanta Hospital in Gurgaon, officials said on Wednesday.
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 annual pilgrimage to the Himalayan cave shrine of Amarnath took off on Sunday as the first batch of pilgrims set off from winter capital Jammu in the morning.
The state government has alerted the Army, air force and other agencies to meet any eventuality in light of the inclement weather along the twin mountain treks, north Kashmir Baltel and south Kashmir Pahalgam to the Himalayan cave shrine of Amarnath.
Union Minister for Human Resource Development Kapil Sibal has urged President Pratibha Patil to flag off a government-sponsored Yatra, christened as Sakshar Bharat Yatra from Delhi on February 18.
'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.
