Jammu, 29 June (Hindustan Times). Ahead of the commencement of the annual Amarnath Yatra on July 1, a large number of pilgrims have started arriving at Yatri Niwas, the base camp at Bhagwati Nagar in Jammu. From this base camp, on Friday i.e. June 30, the first batch will leave for Baltal and Pahalgam base camps. From these two base camps, the pilgrims will start their journey towards the holy cave on Saturday.
Devotees from different parts of the country have started arriving at the Bhagwati Nagar base camp in Jammu to have darshan of Bafarni Baba Amarnath. Registration is mandatory for the trip. For this, arrangements have been made for immediate registration in Jammu city. Devotees of Bhole are engaged in queues since morning for travel registration. The enthusiasm of the devotees for the darshan of Baba Barfani is being seen. The whole city has started echoing with the cheers of Bam Bam Bhole.
This year the Amarnath Yatra will last for 62 days. The yatra will start on July 1 and end on August 31. This journey has a different significance for Hindus. The pilgrimage will start from the routes of Nunwan in Pahalgam and Baltal in Kashmir’s Ganderbal district. About 120 langars have been installed on both these yatra routes. There are about 50 langars from Lakhanpur to Baltal and Pahalgam. In Udhampur district, a total of 22 langars have been set up at various places on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway.
Meanwhile, State Director General of Police Dilbag Singh, Additional Chief Secretary Raj Kumar Goyal, Principal Secretary to Lieutenant Governor Mandeep Kumar Bhandari had made a comprehensive tour of both the pilgrimage routes of Amarnath Yatra. The officials stressed on the focus and identification of sensitive areas on full coordination between the forces and others for the smooth conduct of the yatra. The Anantnag district administration has made arrangements for all facilities including medical, sanitation and others before the start of the yatra.
Deputy Commissioner Anantnag Syed Fakhruddin Hamid said that this year all arrangements for RIFD, sanitation, logging have been made and all departments are working for the yatra. This yatra is not only a symbol of spiritual harmony but also of communal harmony.
Strict security arrangements have been made by the administration regarding the Amarnath Yatra. This time, not only in both the base camps, but also on the marked places along the entire yatra route, CCTV cameras will be monitored. Helipads have also been prepared at Holy Cave, Panchtarni, Sheshnag, so that there is no problem in relief work in case of emergency. Seven helipads have been prepared in the area, on which helicopters can land even at night. 1243 street lights have been installed on the way up to Baltal Base Camp and Holy Cave. In addition, 19 gensets have also been installed at identified locations with manpower and fuel.
The security of the Amarnath cave, located at an altitude of 3888 meters amidst the snowy mountains, traditionally rests with the CRPF, but this time this responsibility has been given to the Indo Tibet Border (ITBP) Police. It is believed that this time during the Amarnath Yatra, the change in the security system has also happened due to Manipur violence.
