Excitement marked the onset of the annual Amarnath Yatra in Jammu and Kashmir starting on Friday, with the first batch of pilgrims arriving in the Valley on Thursday for the onward journey to the cave shrine.
A batch of 4,822 pilgrims was flagged off earlier in the day by lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha from the Bhagwati Nagar Yatri Niwas in Jammu, with top district officers lining up to welcome it in all districts en route — a sign of the increasing importance accorded to the event after the 2019 scrapping of tthe erstwhile state’s special status.
The officers, including locals, greeted the pilgrims with garlands, flower bouquets and petals. The devotees said they were delighted to be part of the 57-day-long pilgrimage.
The establishment has made tight security arrangements for the Yatra, with thousands of personnel deployed across the Union Territory to ensure a violence-free event.
“Shri Amarnath Ji Yatra is a sacred path where devotion meets spiritual awakening. I wish all devotees a safe, blissful and spiritually fulfilling journey. May this holy pilgrimage bring immense joy and divine peace to all,” Sinha said, flagging off the first batch of devotees.
A spokesperson said extensive arrangements had been made for the devotees coming from across the country and abroad. “In the first batch, more than 4,800 pilgrims set off for the holy Yatra of Shri Amarnath Ji in a convoy of 259 light and heavy vehicles,” he said.
Last year’s Yatra was held weeks after the Pahalgam militant attack, which reduced the footfall of pilgrims to around 4 lakh, compared to more than 5 lakh in the preceding year. Sinha, however, had called it a miracle, given the tensions prevailing here. Officials said the convoy entered the Valley through the Navyug Tunnel in Qazigund in south Kashmir’s Kulgam district under a tight multi-tier security cover.
“They received a rousing welcome. Police and civil administration officials, including the IG CRPF (inspector-general of the Central Reserve Police Force) and DIG South Kashmir Range Javid Iqbal Matoo, greeted the pilgrims with garlands, flower bouquets and petals,” the spokesperson said. The 57-day pilgrimage will conclude on August 28.