Jammu Tawi, June 4: The Bhagwati Nagar based Yatri Niwas base camp gets a facelift to welcome the pilgrims ahead of the annual Shri Amarnath Yatra starting from July 3 from twin routes.
The Jammu Tourism Department along with all other stakeholders are in action mode to give a facelift to the infrastructure and finalising all facilities with an aim to embrace the visitors from all over the country leaving from Bhagwati Nagar for the Kashmir valley to perform trekking on the twin Baltal and Pahalgam routes.
“The Yatri Niwas with a capacity to accommodate 2000 pilgrims is getting a facelift and will be ready for the yatries by mid of June,” said an official.
The Jammu Divisional Commissioner Ramesh Kumar in a review meeting here on June 1 also directed the officials to complete the repair and renovation works by June 15.
“The repair has already started at the Yatri Niwas by the executing agencies and the facility will thereafter be handed over to the Tourism Department as the first batch of pilgrims from Jammu Yatri Niwas will leave from here for Shri Amarnath Cave Shrine for Pahalgam and Baltal routes,” he said.
He added that likewise every year, heavy influx of pilgrims is expected and the administration at the Divisional as well as the district levels has directed the officers to expedite the preparations for the Yatra.
“To start with, the first batch of devotees will be made to feel like home with a welcome at Lakhanpur—located on J&K-Punjab border and upto the holy cave of Shri Amarnath, the journey will be facilitated by the authorised agencies tasked for the yatra,” he said.
The executing agencies has emphasized the importance of maintaining high standards of quality, sanitation, and coordination to ensure a safe, comfortable, and well-managed environment for the yatris to ensure all necessary infrastructure, services, and logistics in place well in advance, in close coordination with all concerned departments, for the smooth and successful conduct of the Yatra.
“Moreover, besides infrastructural arrangements and facilities, health of the pilgrims visiting the Yatri Niwas will also be taken care of for which a team of Jammu and Kashmir Health Department will be deputed round the clock on roster basis and importantly, pilgrims from outside the Jammu and Kashmir, can also avail the facility of post-paid numbers of various telecom service providers,” he added.
Moreover, he said that counters will be set up by Jammu-Kashmir Road Transport Corporation and besides that mobile toilets will also be installed at the Yatri Niwas while prefabricated sheds shall also be installed to accommodate more pilgrims in case of heavy rush.
“Security is the key focus area and there will be no compromise on this part for which additional troops are to be deployed within the Yatri Niwas and also in the vicinity for the safety of the pilgrims,” said the official.
He said, “the pilgrims batches will be escorted by the security personnel from Jammu to the Cave Shrine because each and every pilgrim is “our guest” and we firmly believe in “Atithi Devo Bhava”, which means “The Guest is God”, he said.
Divisional Commissioner Jammu, Ramesh Kumar in a meeting flanked by Inspector General of Police Bhim Sen Tuti, also took stock of the ongoing preparations and works undertaken by different departments to provide a convenient and hassle-free stay to the pilgrims at the Bhagwati Nagar Yatri Niwas before they depart to Baltal and Pahalgam base camps.
He further called for augmentation of Cloak room facility, sanitation and illumination within the premises, besides ensuring availability of doctors, ambulances and sufficient stock of medicines at the base camp.
It was informed that this year the Token Centre for on-spot registration and RFID shall be established at Tawi River Front, relieving the traffic and crowd issues at Railway Station.
The IGP Jammu called for seamless coordination between the security forces and administration for timely completion of all the necessary preparations for smooth conduct of Shri Amarnath Yatra.
