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Amarnath Yatra resumes

Highway restored after landslide due to heavy rain near Ramban

The yatra has been suspended thrice for different reasons since June 17
As many as 3,51,987 devotees have offered prayers and performed ‘darshan’ till Friday

JAMMU: The Amarnath Yatra resumed from here on Saturday with authorities allowing a fresh batch of 4,105 pilgrims to leave after blockades on the Jammu-Srinagar highway in Ramban were cleared, officials said here.

After suspension of yatra on Friday in the wake of continued protests in Kashmir valley, authorities on Saturday allowed a batch of 4,105 pilgrims, including 1,034 women and 193 children, to undertake journey from base camp at Bhagwati nagar at around 6.15 am.

However, their convoy was stopped at Chanderkote after landslide at Kela Morh and rockslide at Panthal between Ramban and Ramsu on the highway due to heavy rains.

The road was then cleared by Border Roads Organisation personnel in two hours and made traffic worthy by noon, they said.

The pilgrims in a fleet of 126 vehicles and escorted by security personnel had already crossed the vulnerable areas by 1.30 pm and were proceeding towards their respective destinations at base camps of Nunwan in Pahalgam and Baltal, officials hadsaid.

With today’s batch, as many as 27,062 pilgrims from different parts of the country have left from here to the mountainous shrine in south Kashmir since the commencement of the pilgrimage on June 17.

The yatra has been suspended thrice for different reasons since June 17.

Reports from Srinagar said that as many as 3,51,987 devotees have offered prayers and performed ‘darshan’ at the 3,880 metre-high shrine till yesterday.

On Friday authorities suspended the yatra in view of the continued strike in Kashmir valley over transfer of forest land to Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB).

The devotees were not allowed to proceed from Bhagwati Nagar base camp to the Amarnath cave shrine of Lord Shiva in the Kashmir Himalayas.

The step was taken as a precautionary measure for ensuring safety of pilgrims as protests over the land transfer issue were continuing in the valley for the last few days.

- PTI

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