More Than 26,000 Pilgrims Visit Amarnath Shrine Amid Tightened Security Measures In Kashmir News24 –

More than 26,000 pilgrims have visited the holy Amarnath cave shrine over the past two days, as large numbers of devotees are arriving in the Kashmir Valley for the Amarnath Yatra. According to official data, 14,515 pilgrims made the journey to the shrine by Friday evening, contributing to a total of 26,863 Yatris since Thursday.

The third batch of over six thousand pilgrims departed from the Bhagwati Nagar base camp in Jammu early Friday morning and has since reached the twin base camps of Baltal in Ganderbal and Nunwan in Pahalgam, Anantnag. Another group of devotees left today from the Bhagwati Nagar base camp in Jammu.

Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha visited the Baltal base camp yesterday to inaugurate the newly constructed Yatri Niwas complex, designed to accommodate up to 800 pilgrims at the base camp. During his visit, LG Sinha lauded the collaborative efforts of the administration, security forces, local residents of the Valley, and the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board in conducting a safe and memorable pilgrimage for Amarnath Yatris.

Manoj Sinha said, “More than 20,000 devotees have had darshan of Baba Amarnath so far. Pilgrims are coming from different parts of the country, but priority is being given to registered pilgrims.” He added that those arriving ahead of their scheduled dates should wait patiently until their registration is completed.

Around 350,000 pilgrims have already registered online for this year’s pilgrimage. The administration has established 34 lodging centers across Jammu and Kashmir to accommodate the incoming Yatris.

Meanwhile, pilgrims are being issued Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags for tracking and safety purposes. The 38-day-long Amarnath Yatra, which commenced on July 3, will culminate on August 9 next month.