Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, July 4: N. N. Vohra, Governor, who is Chairman of the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board, chaired a meeting here today to discuss the problems of the pilgrims during the first 9 days of the Shri Amarnathji Yatra. Navin K. Choudhary, Chief Executive Officer, SASB, Preet Pal Singh, Additional CEO, SASB, and other concerned officers were present in the meeting.
The Governor expressed serious concern over the unfortunate deaths of 22 pilgrims during the first 9 days of the pilgrimage, mostly due to cardiac failures. He directed the CEO to take immediate steps for further publicizing the Do’s and Don’ts and the Health Advisory issued by the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board for the Yatris.
It was reiterated that all intending pilgrims who wish to undertake the Yatra to the Shri Amarnathji Holy Shrine must follow and fully adhere to the Do’s and Don’ts and the Health Advisory issued by the Shrine Board, and also available at the Board’s website, before deciding to undertake the Yatra.
All those intending to undertake the Yatra were once again urged to take all required precautions and no person who has any medical or orthopaedic ailment, or any breathing, chest or heart problem should even think of undertaking this arduous Yatra, which involves climbing upto nearly 14,000 feet. Trekking in the high altitude route to the Holy Cave is difficult and, besides, inclement weather also poses challenges for the pilgrims. Doctors and paramedical staff along both the two routes, via Pahalgam and Baltal, have been deployed for providing emergency medicare and treatment to the pilgrims. Any Yatri feeling uneasy must immediately seek medical assistance. It was also emphasized that every Yatri, even those in good physical condition, must carry the medicine, which he or she is required to take daily, if any, and, besides, some general preparations like Glucose, Disprin, Combiflam, Moove, Iodex etc.
Of the total of 22 Yatris who lost their lives, 15 were males and 7 females; 5 were from Punjab, 3 each from Haryana and Gujarat, 2 each from Rajasthan and Karnataka and one each from West Bengal, Jharkhand, UP, MP, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Uttarakhand. In the past 9 days, 13 pilgrims lost their lives due to cardiac arrest. 11 Yatris died at the Yatra Camps, 2 in hospitals at Srinagar and the remaining 9 at various locations in the entire Yatra area.
Preet Pal Singh, Additional CEO of the Shrine Board disclosed that in the case of death of any Yatri, the Shrine Board arranges, at its own expense, to shift the dead body from the place of death to the Base Camp and from there to the Police Control Room at Srinagar for Post Mortem and other required formalities. In indigent cases, the Shrine Board has been providing the required financial support for transporting the dead to their native places.
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