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Another
batch of Amarnath pilgrims
resumes yatra
Jammu:
The annual pilgrimage to the holy cave shrine of Amarnath in south
Kashmir has turned out to be a staggered one due to inclement weather.
Today another batch of pilgrims from Jammu proceeded towards the shrine
after the pilgrimage was suspended for a day on Saturday due to landslides
and heavy snowfall. The yatra, which is usually confined to a one-month
period, has been extended to two months this year. Officials said a batch
of 3,214 pilgrims, which included 121 children left from the base camp
of MAM stadium here between 5 and 5.30 today morning. Security personnel
escorted the convoy of 94 vehicles carrying the pilgrims, they said. Security
forces have been put on a high alert along the entire route of the Amarnath
yatra to ensure the safety of the devotees. Officials said they have put
in place a three-tier security cordon complete with chopper surveys, trained
commando lookouts and hundreds of infantry personnel frisking the mountain
ranges for suspected terrorists. Besides the state police, central paramilitary
forces like the Central Reserve Police Force and Border Security Force
have also been pressed into service for to prevent any untoward incident
from happening.
-June 18, 2006
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