Jammu, Aug 7: The Budha Amarnath pilgrimage in Poonch district began on Wednesday, with the first batch of 651 pilgrims leaving from here.
A convoy of 14 vehicles carrying the pilgrims was flagged off by Divisional Commissioner Ramesh Kumar, Additional Director General of Police, Jammu Zone, Anand Jain and several Bajrang Dal and VHP leaders from the Bhagwati Nagar base camp here.
Jain said all security arrangements have been put in place to ensure an incident-free yatra.
The First batch was received at Yatra Station Rajouri by Deputy Commissioner, Om Prakash Bhagat. The Deputy Commissioner and SSP Rajouri Randeep Kumar also welcomed them at Sunderbani Yatra station and accompanied the first batch to Rajouri base camp.
The Deputy Commissioner also took stock of different facilities put in place for the comfortable stay of the pilgrims at the yatra station including drinking water, power supply, toilet facilities, langer, facilities sanitation, medicare, security etc. He asked the concerned officers to make all possible efforts so that the yatris don't feel any inconvenience during their journey.
Meanwhile, the District Administration Poonch along with Bajrang Dal, Sanatan Dharam Sabha, Akhara Committee, the civil society and the locals have received the first batch of Shri Budha Amarnath Ji Yatris.
A total of 15 vehicles carrying 687 Yatris reached Poonch on the first day.
On the occasion, Deputy Commissioner Poonch, Yasin M. Choudhary, DIG Rajouri- Poonch Tejinder Singh, SSP Poonch, Yougal Manhas, ADDC Poonch, Sandesh Kumar Sharma, ADC Poonch, Tahir Mustafa Malik, DDC member Ch.Abdul Ghani, ARTO Poonch, Tara Mani, SE PHE, CHO, Sanjeev Kumar, CMO Poonch, Dr. Zulafkar Ahmed, Yatra Officers and esteemed members of the civil society, including the President of VHP, Nishu Gupta, the President of Akhara Mandir, Basant Ram, the President of SDS, Khetarpal Pal, the President of DGPC, Narinder Singh, Dr. Updesh Sharma, and Adv. Rajinder Singh, Taj Mir, were present to welcome the Yatris and wish them a safe pilgrimage.
On the occasion, various types of food stalls were set up on the ground to cater to the needs of the Yatris, ensuring their comfort and well-being during their stay.
The arrival of the first batch of pilgrims marks the beginning of a significant event, and the District Administration, along with the local organizations, has left no stone unturned to ensure a warm and memorable experience for the Yatris.
The Yatra will continue for around 10 days and Poonch will host thousands of Yatris. It will end with the commencement of Chari Yatra from Poonch to Budha Amarnath Ji Mandi.
The Yatra is a landmark event in the history of J&k and more particularly for district Poonch as it's an old age tradition. With time it has become a local culture to extend hospitality to Yatris.
