Srinagar, Jul 3: The annual Amarnath Yatra commenced on Friday with the first batches of pilgrims setting out from the twin base camps at Baltal and Nunwan for the 3,880-metre-high cave shrine in the south Kashmir Himalayas, where the naturally formed ice lingam is enshrined, officials said.
The pilgrimage began early morning along the two designated routes — the traditional 48-km Nunwan-Pahalgam track and the shorter 14-km Baltal route — despite intermittent rainfall. The batches, comprising men, women and sadhus, left at first light from the Nunwan base camp in Pahalgam of Anantnag district and the Baltal base camp in Sonamarg area of Ganderbal district.
Devotional chants of “Bum Bum Bhole” filled the air as the pilgrims were flagged off by the respective Deputy Commissioners and Senior Superintendents of Police at the two base camps.
On Thursday, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha flagged off the first batch of over 4,809 pilgrims from the Bhagwati Nagar Yatri Niwas in Jammu. The pilgrims reached the Kashmir Valley later in the day and received a warm welcome from the administration and local residents before proceeding towards the holy cave shrine.
Authorities have made elaborate security arrangements for the smooth and peaceful conduct of the 57-day pilgrimage. Thousands of personnel from the Jammu and Kashmir Police, the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and other paramilitary forces have been deployed along the yatra routes, while aerial surveillance is also being carried out.
The annual pilgrimage will conclude on August 28. (Agencies)
