Srinagar, Jul 31 (KNO): The annual Amarnath Yatra remained suspended from the Baltal route on Friday due to inclement weather and ongoing repair work on the track, even as a fresh batch of 1,605 pilgrims left the Bhagwati Nagar Yatri Niwas in Jammu for the Baltal base camp.
Officials told the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) that the pilgrimage had already been suspended from the Pahalgam route to facilitate restoration and repair works. They said the Baltal route was also closed on Friday as a precautionary measure in view of continuous rainfall since Thursday.
A senior government official told KNO that the decision was taken to ensure the safety of pilgrims. "The Amarnath Yatra has been suspended for today as a precautionary measure following continuous rainfall since yesterday. With rainfall continuing in the Baltal area, authorities have temporarily halted the pilgrimage to ensure the safety of pilgrims. Further decisions on resumption will be taken after reviewing weather conditions and the overall safety situation," the official said.
He said the Yatra would resume only after weather conditions improve and the tracks are declared safe by the concerned authorities.
Meanwhile, despite a complete traffic halt on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway for restoration and slope stabilisation works, a fresh batch of 1,605 pilgrims left the Bhagwati Nagar Yatri Niwas in Jammu early Friday for the Baltal base camp.
According to officials, the 24th batch departed at 2:42 am in a convoy of 54 vehicles, including 38 buses, seven medium motor vehicles (MMVs) and nine light motor vehicles (LMVs). The batch comprised 1,215 male pilgrims, 335 women, 48 sadhus, five sadhvis and two children accompanying sadhus.
A total number of pilgrims who have left the Bhagwati Nagar base camp for the shrine this year has reached 1,35,806, officials said.
The 57-day annual pilgrimage commenced on July 3 and has witnessed an overwhelming response from devotees. Around 4.5 lakh pilgrims have so far paid obeisance at the holy cave shrine housing the naturally formed ice lingam.
The Yatra is scheduled to conclude on August 28, coinciding with the festival of Raksha Bandhan—(KNO)