1,550 pilgrims leave Jammu for Amarnath Yatra

Jammu: A batch of 1,550 pilgrims left the Bhagwati Nagar camp here on Monday for the twin base camps in Kashmir to undertake the onward journey to the 3,880-metre-high Amarnath cave shrine.

A record number of over 3.88 lakh pilgrims have so far paid obeisance at the shrine since the beginning of the 62-day-long annual pilgrimage on July 1. The yatra will conclude on August 31.

Of the 1,550 pilgrims in this smallest batch to leave the Bhagwati Nagar camp, 1,068 are performing the yatra through the traditional 48-km Pahalgam track in the Anantnag district while 472 are heading for the 14-km Baltal route in Ganderbal district, officials said.

The drop in pilgrim footfall was attributed to the complete melting of the naturally formed ice Shiva lingam at the Amarnath cave.

The 62-day annual pilgrimage to the 3,888-metre-high cave shrine commenced from the twin tracks of Pahalgam in Anantnag district and Baltal in Ganderbal district on July 1. The yatra is scheduled to conclude on August 31.