Record-Breaking Amarnath Yatra Underway Despite Heavy Rains

Over 5,600 pilgrims braved heavy rains to embark on the Amarnath Yatra from Jammu. More than 30,000 devotees visited the cave shrine in one day, raising the total number of pilgrims to over one lakh. The pilgrimage, which started on June 29, will conclude on August 19.

Despite heavy rains, over 5,600 pilgrims departed from Jammu to the twin basecamps, Baltal and Pahalgam, en route to the Amarnath cave shrine on Thursday, officials reported.

Officials noted that over 30,000 devotees offered prayers to the naturally occurring ice lingam on Wednesday alone, bringing the total number of pilgrims to over one lakh.

The seventh batch, including 4,487 men, 1,011 women, 10 children, and 188 sadhus and sadhvis, departed at 3:13 am in a convoy of 219 vehicles, escorted by the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) from Bhagwati Nagar base camp. Of these, 3,668 pilgrims chose the traditional 48 km Pahalgam route, while 2,028 opted for the shorter 14 km Baltal route.

Since June 28, when Lt Governor Manoj Sinha flagged off the first batch, a total of 37,522 pilgrims have left the Jammu base camp. The 52-day yatra officially commenced on June 29 and will conclude on August 19. Last year, over 4.5 lakh pilgrims offered prayers at the cave shrine, situated at an elevation of 3,880 metres.

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