Amarnath Yathra resumes; 36,366 pilgrims paid obeisance

After the rain havoc halting the Amarnath Yathra for the past two days, it restarted again with the sixth batch of 3,489 pilgrims leaving from Jammu today. The pilgrims, including 774 women and 237 sadhus, are headed to the 3,888-metre-high cave shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas, amid tight security.

The pilgrims left for the cave shrine in 114 vehicles from the Bhagwati Nagar base camp at 2:30 am. So far, 36,366 pilgrims have visited the shrine by taking the 36-km Pahalgam track in Anantnag and 12-km Baltal route in Ganderbal since the commencement of the annual 60-day pilgrimage on June 28.

The sixth batch of 3,489 pilgrims are expected to reach the Baltal and Pahalgam base camps in the Valley later in the day, said a police official. Around 2,252 pilgrims left in 69 vehicles for the Pahalgam base camp and 1,237 in 45 vehicles for the Baltal base camp. With today’s batch, 23,718 pilgrims have left for the cave shrine from the Jammu base camp.

The 60-day yatra will conclude on August 26 coinciding with ‘Raksha Bandhan’.