Pilgrims on the way to Amarnath cave shrine, near Chandanwari base camp, at Pahalgam in Anantnag district, Thursday, June 30, 2022. The 43-day yatra began after a gap of over two years due to COVID-19.
Highlights
- Another batch of 6,113 worshippers moved from Bhagwati Nagar base camp towards valley for yatra
- This year's pilgrimage to the cave shrine (Amarnath Yatra) comes after a hiatus of three-years
- The yatra in 2019 was cut short ahead of the abrogation of Article 370
Amarnath Yatra news updates: More than 11,000 pilgrims have performed Amarnath Yatra so far this year, as another batch of 6,113 worshippers on Saturday (July 2) moved from the Bhagwati Nagar base camp in Jammu towards the valley.
"Over 11,000 yatris had darshan inside the holy cave shrine so far, while 23,214 others have moved towards the valley since the pilgrimage started on Thursday (June 30)," officials said.
Saturday's batch moved in two escorted convoys towards Baltal and Pahalgam base camps.
"Of these, 1,940 are going to Baltal while 4,173 are going to Pahalgam," the officials said.
This year's pilgrimage to the cave shrine comes after a hiatus of three years.
The yatra in 2019 was cut short ahead of the abrogation of Article 370, while it remained suspended in 2020 and 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
When yatra will conclude?
The pilgrimage will conclude on August 11 on Shravan Purnima coinciding with the Raksha Bandhan festival.
Security has been tightened in Jammu and Kashmir with special emphasis on the use of over 130 sniffer dogs on the vehicle routes heading towards the shrine to ensure safe pilgrimage amid heightened terror threats.
Amid tight security arrangements, the fourth batch of 6,113 pilgrims, including 1,292 women, left the Bhagwati Nagar base camp on Saturday to pay obeisance at the 3,880-metre-high holy cave shrine of Amarnath in south Kashmir Himalayas, officials said.
The pilgrims, also comprising 195 Sadhus and 25 children, will be reaching the twin base camps of Pahalgam in Anantnag district and Baltal in Ganderbal district later in the day. Over 20,000 pilgrims have offered their prayers at the cave shrine, housing the naturally formed ice-shivlingam, since the commencement of the 43-day yatra on June 30 from the twin routes - the traditional 48-km Nunwan-Pahalgam in south Kashmir's Anantnag and the 14-km shorter Baltal in central Kashmir's Ganderbal.
Of the latest batch that left the Bhagwati Nagar base camp, the officials said 4,173 pilgrims left in a convoy of 148 vehicles for the Pahalgam base camp, while another 1,940 pilgrims preferred the Baltal route and departed in a fleet of 80 vehicles. With this, 23,214 yatris have left the Bhagwati Nagar base camp for the Valley since June 29, the day the first batch of pilgrims was flagged off by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha.
(With agencies inputs)
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