Senior officers monitoring situation: Dr Jitendra
*Pilgrimage to remain suspended today
Avtar Bhat
JAMMU, July 8: The Amarnath Ji yatra was suspended for the second consecutive day today following incessant rains, snowfall and landslides, leaving about 49,000 pilgrims stranded in Jammu and at various places en route to the cave shrine.
Officials said that yatra remained suspended from Jammu to twin base camps of Nunwan-Pahalgam and Baltal today while it also remained suspended to holy cave from twin tracks for second consecutive day today due to heavy rains, shooting stones and snowfall.
Deputy Commissioner Jammu, Avny Lavasa told Excelsior that in view of bad weather conditions the Amarnath yatra from Jammu to twin base camps in Kashmir will remain suspended tomorrow also.
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Divisional Commissioner Jammu, Ramesh Kumar who chaired a meeting of concerned Deputy Commissioners to review the arrangements in view of Yatra suspension due to bad weather conditions was informed by concerned DCs of five districts that around 6000 yatris have been lodged in Yatri Niwas, Chanderkote in Ramban district, 600 in Udhampur, 6000 in Jammu, 1200 in Samba and 1100 in Kathua district.
The meeting was also informed that the registration and distribution of tokens for yatra will also be suspended for tomorrow.
Reports reaching here from Kashmir valley said that over 34,000 yatris are stranded at twin base camps and transit camps enroute to holy cave for last two days as the yatra has been suspended due to bad weather conditions since yesterday.
Reports said 19,489 yatris were halted at Baltal base camp overnight while 6,667 left the base camp for Srinagar. Besides, 20,230 pilgrims were stranded at Nunwan Base camp and other transit camps along Pahalgam Chandanwari axis.
Among them 5,359 pilgrims were camping at Nunwan base camp, 807 at Chandanwari, 89 at Pissu Top, 79 at Zojibal, 4913 at Sheshnag, 8168 at Panchtarni, 14 at Nangakoti, 763 at Poshpathri and 38 at near holy cave.
Union Minister in PMO, Dr Jitendra Singh assured the pilgrims that senior officials are monitoring the situation and requested them not to panic and to follow instructions issued by authorities from time to time.
Dr Jitendra Singh in a tweet said that he is constantly in touch with authorities. “ I have spoken to Army Commander, Northern Command, Lt Gen Upendra Dwivedi and CEO Amarnath Shrine Board, Dr Mandeep Bhandari.
He said officers are personally monitoring the situation. NDRF and SDRF are already on job. He requested the yatris not to panic and follow instructions issued by authorities from time to time.
Dr Piyush Singla, Nodal officer Amarnath Yatra said that decision regarding resumption of yatra tomorrow will be subject to improvement in weather.
DC Ramban, Mussarat Islam said that the decision regarding allowing the stranded pilgrims at Ramban to leave for holy cave will be taken by Shrine Board subject to improvement of weather and relenting of shooting stones.
It may be recalled that heavy rains have lashed large parts of Jammu and Kashmir since Thursday night while several high-altitude areas, including Mahaguns Top and adjoining areas near the Amarnath cave shrine, experienced snowfall. Some places witnessed record rainfall over a 24-hour period for July.
Over 86,000 pilgrims have paid obeisance at the holy cave shrine so far.
The pilgrims were stranded in Jammu and at various places including Chanderkote along the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway, which was closed for traffic following multiple landslides and the washing away of a portion of the road near Panthiyal tunnel. But the inclement weather has not dampened the spirits of devotees.
Hundreds of Sadhus who were camping at different halls and temples in Jammu said that they will abide by the advisory issued by the Shrine Board and embark on the yatra only when the weather improves.
The Sadhus who were singing bhajans at Purani Mandi temple said that they have no complaint about the arrangements and the decision of suspending the yatra was taken by the authorities in the larger interests of the pilgrims.
“We will not return but wait at Jammu till weather improves to leave for darshan of Bole Baba’’, said Sadhu Rammanad who had come from Haridwar and had reached here two days back with a group of 10 Sadhus.
“I was supposed to leave for the Valley to join the yatra today (Saturday) but the closure of the highway and the weather did not allow further journey,” Deepu, a resident of Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh camping at Bhagwati Nagar base camp said.
Deepu, who was accompanied by several friends, said they will wait for the weather to clear and will complete their Yatra. “We are here on the call of ‘Baba Barfani’ and are not going back unless we perform darshan,” he said.
Manisha, a resident of Madhya Pradesh, said she had come with a lot of hopes and prayers and will wait till the next week before thinking of returning home.
Suraj Sharma, a resident of Ghaziabad (UP), said he is satisfied with the arrangements made by the local administration for the pilgrims at the base camp. “We have left for the Yatra and we are going to complete it even if it means waiting for a month,” he said,
Shyam Sahu, a resident of Maharashtra who is among over 6000 devotees at Chanderkote, said he had been planning for the Yatra for the past couple of years.
“We have been stopped here since Friday afternoon and will wait for the clearance to proceed ahead. We are not facing any problem as the Government has made all arrangements for our boarding, lodging and security,” Sahu said.
The administration in several districts has issued advisories to people, asking them to remain cautious and set up control rooms for any eventuality. All the pilgrims are safe and sheltering at halting stations along the route, the officials said, adding that the yatra will resume after the weather improves.
Meanwhile, the Army is conducting area domination patrols daily along the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway with drones, surveillance equipment and sniffer dogs to ensure a secure passage for Amarnath pilgrims, officials said on Saturday.
The drills on the highway are an integral part of the multi-security grid responsible for facilitating a smooth and incident-free pilgrimage spanning 62 days from July 1, they said. “The Army undertakes intense area domination patrolling along the entire route of the yatra, from Jammu to Banihal and beyond, providing security to pilgrims,” a senior security official said.
The Northern Army Commander and the Corps Commanders oversee the security arrangements and regularly assess the ground situation, they added. “These tireless efforts, often performed in challenging conditions, significantly contribute to the successful execution of the pilgrimage while prioritising the safety and well-being of the pilgrims,” the official said.
The Amarnath yatra attracts devotees from across the globe and contributes significantly to the local economy, benefiting small villages along the route, as well as larger towns and cities in Jammu and Kashmir, the officials said.
Meanwhile, a pilgrim died in a road accident on Jammu-Pathankot National highway at Tandi Kohoi in Samba district today. He was identified as 35 year old Rahul Kumar, son of Satish Kumar of Trilokpuri Delhi. He was shifted to Emergency Hospital, Vijaypur where doctors declared him as brought dead.
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