Jammu Tawi, July 3: Unregistered Amarnath pilgrims from various parts of the country on Monday flooded Tatkal counters in Jammu for on-spot registrations, standing in long queues for their permits to visit the holy cave shrine.
Five Tatkal counters have been set up for on-spot registrations.
The annual Amarnath pilgrimage has attracted a large number of unregistered pilgrims and seers since Thursday, officials said. The 62-day annual pilgrimage to the cave shrine of Amarnath in Jammu and Kashmir began on July 1. The pilgrims undertake a journey to the shrine located at an altitude of about 13,000 feet.
The pilgrims expressed their concern over the lengthy wait times for their yatra dates. Many have limited resources, making it challenging to accommodate them.
“We have been enduring the scorching heat, waiting patiently for hours. It would be a great relief if the administration considers our circumstances,” Santosh Ahoja, a devotee from Madhya Pradesh, said.
The devotees also appealed to Lt Governor Manoj Sinha to consider their time and resources and make their pilgrimage feasible.
“We humbly request the Lt Governor to facilitate our pilgrimage, understanding our constraints of time and resources,” said Maneesh Kumar Mehta, who has come with a group of pilgrims from Meerut.
The administration has issued 4,000 permits for registration and over 900 pilgrims have registered for the pilgrimage at counters in Jammu.
However, several groups are facing difficulties due to the mismatched registration dates for their members.
“Our group is facing challenges as our members have been assigned different dates for registration. It would be helpful if the administration could address this issue,” Mehta said.
Anshuman Singh from Pune, who has visited the cave shrine thrice before, praised the facilities for the yatra.
“This year, it has become more convenient with Aadhaar authentication-based form generation,” he said.
Thirty-three accommodation centres have been set up across Jammu while Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags will be issued at the registration centres, the officials said.
