13,000 pilgrims pay obeisance at holy cave

Excelsior Correspondent

JAMMU, July 13:  Over 13,000 pilgrims paid obeisance in the holy cave of Swami Amarnath situated at an altitude of 3880 metres in deep Himalayas in South Kashmir district of Anantnag on the 16 day of darshan today. Till date 1,65,006 yatris paid obeisance in the holy cave since the two month long yatra started on June 28.
According to an officer on yatra duty 13,083 yatris paid obeisance in the holy cave today. He said the yatra is proceeding smoothly on both the tracks and there is a huge rush of pilgrims.  He said about 6,000 pilgrims, including women and Sadhus, left for holy cave from both the tracks today.
Meanwhile, 22 pilgrims besides two service providers, have died due to health reasons and accidents during the first 15 days of pilgrimage till today. Officials said that pilgrimage was progressing smoothly to holy cave shrine from both sides. He said a fresh batch of about 3,800 pilgrims left Baltal base camp for the holy cave shrine early Friday morning. The pilgrims are scheduled to pay obeisance at the cave shrine after covering the 14-km-long hilly track on foot this afternoon. Meanwhile, pilgrims, who had night halt at a transit camp after darshan yesterday, have started their return journey to base camp this morning.
Similarly, a fresh batch of about 2,200 pilgrims also left Nunwan Pahalgam base camp for Chandanwari, the first halting station on traditional track, which could be reached by vehicles also. Meanwhile, pilgrims, who had night halt at Chandanwari and other halting stations on the route, have also started their journey on foot towards the cave shrine early this morning.
He said 14 pilgrims died due to medical reasons and eight pilgrims died in accidents at different locations.  Wile two pilgrims died in road mishaps in Jammu. The mortal remains of 17 deceased yatris and one Service Provider were transported by air to airports near their homes in Bihar, West Bengal, Hyderabad, Gujarat and New Delhi.
The bodies of three deceased yatris and one Service Provider were transported by road to their native places.  The Board has also borne the cost of travel of one person who will escort the mortal remains of the deceased pilgrim to his or her home town. As on July 11, 2018, the Board had paid Rs 24 lakh as ex-gratia and spent about Rs 5 lakh on account of transportation cost of the mortal remains of deceased Yatris to their home towns along with one attendant.
As on July 12, 2018, 69 Yatris had been admitted to SKIMS, out of whom, 58 have been discharged and the rest are still under treatment.
Amid tight security, a fresh batch of 3,451 pilgrims today left a base camp here for Kashmir to undertake the annual Amarnath yatra, the police said.
The pilgrims left the Bhagwati Nagar base camp here in two separate convoys for the twin base camps of Pahalgam in Anantnag district and Baltal in Ganderbal district in the early hours, a police official said.     He said that the pilgrims, 2,561 males, 790 females, 77 Sadhus and 23 Sadhvis, left in 64 buses and 46 light motor vehicles.
While 2,281 pilgrims are performing the yatra from the traditional 36-km Pahalgam track, 1,170 pilgrims have opted for the shortest 14-km Baltal route.
The official said the pilgrims left in 110 vehicles amid rains which lashed wide parts of the State this morning.
A 36-year-old Amarnath yatra pilgrim died and three others were injured when a private vehicle hit them on the Jammu-Lakhanpur Highway in Samba district today, a police official said taking the death toll in ongoing yatra to 22.
A group of pilgrims, hailing from Etah district of Uttar Pradesh, were walking when a private car driven by a person called Bhuvin Dubey hit them near Bari Brahmana flyover, the official said.
He said four pilgrims were injured in the accident and were immediately rushed to hospital, where one of them, identified as Mukendra Singh, succumbed to injuries.
The condition of another pilgrim, Chander Paul, is stated to be “critical”, he said, adding Veeri Singh and Ram Paul escaped with minor injuries but are still undergoing treatment.
The mishap took place when it was raining heavily, the official said, adding the driver of the car, a local resident, was arrested and a case was registered against him.
According to Yatra Nodal Officer, Arun Manhas  2100 fresh registrations of yatris were made at three registration counters of Jammu today. He said 3500 yatris are camping in Jammu at Bhagwati Nagar Yatri Niwas and other lodges and community centers.

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