SASB starts snow clearance of tracks
Avtar Bhat
JAMMU, Apr 15: As the -38 day long annual Shri Amarnath Ji pilgrimage is all set to start on July 3, from both tracks, the offline registration of pilgrims intending to have holy yatra this year started today in 540 bank branches across the country.
There was lot of enthusiasm among the pilgrims
making a beeline outside the designated bank branches here today, hoping to get an opportunity to be part of the first batch to visit the revered shrine.
There people including sizable number of women were seen waiting in long queues outside the registration counters of banks in different parts of city today having lot of enthusiasm to get the registration slips first.
The pilgrimage is scheduled to begin on July 3 from the twin routes — the traditional 48-km Pahalgam route in South Kashmir’s Anantnag district and 14-km shorter but steep Baltal route in Ganderbal district.
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The 38-day long yatra will culminate on August 9, coinciding with the Raksha Bandhan festival. Besides J&K Bank, SBI, PNB and Yes Bank have been pressed into service for making offline registrations all over the country.
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Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB), which manages the annual pilgrimage, has designated a total of 540 bank branches across the country for advance registration of the pilgrims, in addition to the online facility for registration on its Website which started on Monday.
According to the Board, no one below the age of 13 or above 75 and women with more than six weeks’ pregnancy shall be registered for the pilgrimage.
“The advance yatra registration commenced this morning with intending devotees, both men and women, turning up early to secure their slot for the annual pilgrimage,” an official of the J&K Bank, said.
He said SASB and administration has made the registration must for all the pilgrims intending to undertake the yatra.
Meanwhile, the SASB has started the snow clearance of both tracks via Nunwan and Baltal side, sources said, adding the snow clearance on tracks from Dumail to holy cave and Chandanwari to Pissutop has begun.
Sources said this year the upgraded track from Chandanwari to Pissutop will also be inaugurated.
Moreover, construction of dormitories, both at Baltal and Nunwan housing 1000 and 700 pilgrims daily respectively has been started.
Though the SASB had not compiled the total number of pilgrims registered on all 540 bank branches across country till late in the night, 4108 pilgrims were registered during the first day on 91 branches of J&K Bank across country today, a senior officer of the Bank incharge registration told the Excelsior.
The people who were waiting for their turn to get registration expressed happiness for the start of registration. Some of them were intending to have darshan for the first time this year while others were going for yatra second, third and fourth times.
People from different parts of Jammu and outskirts had thronged in front of bank branches from early in the morning to get their slot on first come and first go basis. Reenu Devi who was in a queue in front of a bank branch at Rehari said she is going for the first time on the holy pilgrimage this year. She said last year she had also planned to go for pilgrimage but it could not materialize due to some domestic issues.
Expressing happiness over the start of the advance registration, Ajay Mehra, a local resident, said they have been waiting for this day to be among the first to visit the shrine, housing the naturally formed ice-Shivlingam.
“This is my seventh yatra this year and I am happy to be here to get registered,” he said, asking devotees to come for darshan of the Baba Barfani as the happiness you will get there cannot be found anywhere else.
Amid chants of Bum Bum Bole’ by the devotees, he said that the experience of visiting the shrine cannot be described in words.
Sham Lal Dogra, another pilgrim waiting in the queue, said this will be his 45th visit to the shrine this year, while several women said they are visiting the shrine for the first time and are excited for getting their prayers fulfilled.
“I waited for many years and this time my dream to visit the shrine will get fulfilled,” Asha Devi said.
Atika, a college student, said almost all her family members including parents had visited the Amarnath shrine and “this time it is my turn to pay obeisance there”.
Kusum Gupta (50) said she just wanted to go there and offer her prayers. She is part of a six-member family group and they have chosen the Baltal route to complete their first yatra.
Last year, over 5.12 lakh pilgrims visited the shrine which was the highest in the past 12 years.
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