The Amarnath Yatra in Jammu and Kashmir will not have any fresh batches of pilgrims from the Bhagwati Nagar base camp in Jammu proceeding towards the twin destinations of Pahalgam and Baltal till August 15.
The 38th batch of 915 pilgrims had left for Pahalgam and Baltal from Bhagwati Nagar base camp in Jammu on Saturday. So far, a total of 4,31,173 pilgrims have visited the Amarnath Cave Shrine since July 1.
The 62-day annual pilgrimage to the 3,888-meter high cave shrine in the south Kashmir Himalayas commenced from the twin tracks of Pahalgam in Anantnag district and Baltal in Ganderbal district on July 1. It is scheduled to conclude on August 31 on Shravan Purnima with Raksha Bandhan festival.
The decision to not allow any fresh batches of pilgrims till August 15 is likely due to the security situation in the region. There have been a number of terrorist attacks in Jammu and Kashmir in recent months, and the authorities are concerned about the safety of the pilgrims.
The pilgrims who are already on the way to the cave shrine will be allowed to proceed, but no new batches will be allowed to start their journey. The authorities will review the security situation on August 15 and decide whether to allow fresh batches of pilgrims to start their journey.
