By Neeraj Rohmetra
Jammu, Mar 31: Shri Amarnath Shrine Board would strive towards enhancing the carrying capacity of the yatra tracks and undertake progressive improvements in regard to the other yatra facilities.
These recommendations have been made by the Sub-Committee headed by Sri Sri Ravi Shanker, which was constituted in July 2011 to advise the Board regarding the duration and schedule of the yatra in the year 2012 and beyond.
According to the report submitted by the Committee, the Shrine Board should also stipulate appropriate regulations to ensure against such a larger number of pilgrims losing their lives due to medical failures every year. This was stated in view of the fact that as many as 45, 68 and 107 people had lost their lives in 2009, 2010 and 2011 yatras respectively.
The report has further recommended that no yatri would be permitted to embark on pilgrimage to the Holy Shrine without securing a Registation Permit, which shall be valid for a specified date and route.
The annual Shri Amarnath pilgrimage would symbolically commence on the auspicious day of Jyestha Purnima, a day on which the Shrine Board would organize a Pooja at the Holy Cave Shrine and, if this is not feasible due to climatic factors, the Pooja would be held at any other suitable place in the Yatra area, to invoke the blessings of the Lord Shiva for the smooth conduct of the pilgrimage.
“The Shrine Board would organize the process of Registration of Yatris from an early enough date, but not later than May 1, 2012, for their embarking on the pilgrimage which shall commence via both the routes from June 25, this year, which is auspicious day and conclude on Raksha Bandhan”, the report said.
The Shrine Board would make an internal assessment preferably during the first week of June on the status of snow-melt and explore, in consultation with all other stakeholders, the possibility of allowing the Yatris to embark on pilgrimage some time earlier on some auspicious day. “In such an eventuality, Yatris could be registered at short notice through on-line or any other quick means”, the Committee recommended.
Though representatives of the Baba Yatri Niyas in their meeting with the Committee suggested that the Baltal route should be opened for the pilgrimage earlier, without waiting the Chandanwari route to be cleared, the Committee strongly ruled out this possibility.
The Chief Secretary had submitted before the Committee categorically that it was absolutely necessary to commence the Yatra both from Baltal and Chandanwari routes simultaneously on a given day, to avoid serious difficulties, which had arisen in the past.
Top officials of Army and Police, who had deposed before the Committee had urged the Chairman to use his personal influence to dispel the wrong perceptions that Yatra duration is decided on the basis of political compulsions/ threat, rather than on genuine concerns relating to the ground weather conditions and adequate time required to ensure all security arrangements and other facilities on ground.
Security forces need to dominate the entire Yatra area several days ahead of the commencement date. Officials said security personnel are required to arrive 45 days before the Yatra commencement, where after they are imparted pre-induction training, followed by acclimatization/ induction at various locations. They have to move into the Yatra area under very difficulty conditions, when the snow hasn’t melted on the tracks.
The Chairman of the Committee emphatically stated that there was no attempt whatsoever, from any quarter to influence the Board to reduce the Yatra duration. He pointed out that all the agencies including various State Governments, Security Forces and the Shrine Board required a reasonable preparatory time period to move personnel and provide the requisite infrastructure at the identified locations in the Yatra area days ahead of the commencement, without waiting the tracks to be cleared.
The Report stated that the representatives of the Niyas presented their memorandum to the Chairman, which referred, inter-alia to the need for enlarging the Yatra duration to two months and beyond, without expressing its views as to how the present ground constrains/ difficulties, religious traditions, etc. could be overcome.
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