Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, July 11: Maintaining that ice lingam at holy cave of Swami Amarnath is in full size, the Baba Amarnath and Buda Amarnath Yatri Niyas (BABAYN) today rejected all the reports as carried by a section of the press that the ice lingam has melted.
Talking to reporters here today convener of the Niyas Surinder Mohan Aggarwal alleged that canards were spread even before the start of holy Amarnath yatra that the ice lingam has melted which is not based on facts. He reiterated that the significance of holy cave where Lord Shiva narrated the Amar Katha to Goddess Parvati is as sacred as Ice Lingam itself.
While highlighting the various problems being faced by the Amarnath yatris, he said that these yatris are subjected to lot of harassment and humiliation.
He said the yatris are put to many hardships due to inadequate arrangements and non cooperation by the administration.
He said the authorities have also added to the woes of langar organizations while the yatris are also harassed by transporters.
Mr Aggarwal said that the yatris have noticed the non cooperation of Government agencies in providing subsidized ration to langer organizations as the rates of almost all the essential ration items have increased which has led to their problems. The State Government was supposed to come forward and bear the extra cost of langers which it failed to do, he added.
While lauding the role of security agencies in making fool proof security arrangements for Amarnath pilgrims right from Lakhanpur to holy cave, he cautioned them not to be complacent and remain more vigilant in view of recent terrorist strike at Bodh Gaya in Bihar.
He expressed concern over the unscheduled power cuts and inadequate water supply in some Jammu areas which houses the base camp.
He also accused the transporters of overcharging from devotees and criticized the police for harassing the yatris who come for darshan from hundreds of kms away.
The Niyas convener also appealed the yatris to come for darshan as per schedule of registration to avoid any inconvenience.
Mr Aggarwal informed that this year’s yatra for Buda Amarnath will start on August 1 and all arrangements in this regard will be made by the Niyas. He said the observations made by him were on the basis of a team of the Niyas including Karan Singh Charak, Surinder Mishra and Sudershan Khajuria who returned after visiting the holy cave to assess the problems of the yatris.
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