[Srinagar]Rains Delay Commencement of Holi Cave”Amaranth” Yatra
Heavy rainfall today delayed commencement of annual Amaranth Yatra to the cave shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas from Pahalgam and Baltal base camps.
“The yatra has not commenced yet from either Baltal or Pahalgam base camps due to rain,” a spokesman of the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB) said.
Amid tight security, the first batch of nearly 3,000 Amarnath pilgrims from Jammu reached the twin base camps at Baltal and Pahalgam in Kashmir last evening.
Of this group of pilgrims,
1,904 have opted for traditional Pahalgam route while
1,091 choose the Baltal route to reach the Himalayan cave shrine in south Kashmir.
The batch comprises of 2,334 men, 520 women, 21 children and 120 Sadhus,
Security forces has dotted the 400-km road length from Jammu to Baltal and Pahalgam.
The government is for the first time using radio frequency (RF) tags to track Amarnath-bound vehicles
CRPF has introduced motorcycle squads with cameras and various life-saving equipment.
Around 40,000 security personnel from the Jammu and Kashmir Police, paramilitary, National Disaster Response Force and the Army, have been deployed for this year’s pilgrimage.
A total of 2.60 lakh pilgrims offered prayers at the shrine last year.
SASB has decided to allow 7, 500 pilgrims on each route daily.