JAMMU, July 4: Despite heavy rains, over 5,600 pilgrims embarked on their journey from Jammu towards the twin basecamps, Baltal and Pahalgam, for the Amarnath Yatra on Thursday, officials reported. More than 30,000 devotees offered prayers to the naturally formed ice lingam on Wednesday alone, bringing the total number of pilgrims to over one lakh.
The seventh batch of pilgrims included 4,487 men, 1,011 women, 10 children, and 188 ‘sadhus’ and ‘sadhvis’. They departed at 3:13 AM in 219 vehicles, escorted by the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), from the Bhagwati Nagar base camp.
Of these pilgrims, 3,668 chose the traditional 48 km Pahalgam route, while 2,028 opted for the shorter but steeper 14 km Baltal route. Since June 28, when Lt Governor Manoj Sinha flagged off the first batch, a total of 37,522 pilgrims have left the Jammu base camp for the yatra.
The 52-day yatra officially began on June 29 from the twin basecamps in Kashmir and will conclude on August 19. Last year, more than 4.5 lakh pilgrims offered prayers at the cave shrine, located at an elevation of 3,880 meters.
