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Pilgrims from Hazaribagh who are planning to take part in the two month-long Amarnath yatra can hope to “walk” a few miles less before the religious trek than their predecessors.
Punjab National Bank’s Indrapuri branch will start registering people for the first time in Hazaribagh for the yatra that starts in late June.
Hazaribagh resident Manoj Goyal, a member of voluntary outfit Amarnath Seva Shakti Mandal, pointed this out, adding that until last year, only three banks were providing registration facilities in Jharkhand — at Chas (Bokaro), Ranchi and Jamshedpur.
This year, five more bank branches have started offering the service, including Chaibasa (West Singhbhum), Dhanbad, Giridih and Daltonganj (Palamau). Goyal said registration would start in the country from March 18 across 422 branches of various banks.
Devotees can also opt for registering online by logging on the website of the Amarnath shrine board.
Goyal said the medical certificate issued by the board required the approval of the district civil surgeon after a thorough check-up.
Amarnath Seva Shakti Mandal, a Haryana-based voluntary outfit involved in running langar (community kitchen) at Amarnath, will also make the certificates available at photostat shops in town.
“We also want to help the devotees by telling them about the risks involved in the long yatra,” Goyal said.
The yatra will start from June 28 and end on August 21. No less than 400 devotees from Ramgarh and Hazaribagh are part of the yatra every year.
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