Umaisar Gull Ganie
Srinagar, Jul 22: More than 4 lakh pilgrims have undertaken the Amarnath Yatra so far this year, surpassing last year’s figures with nearly a month still to go before the pilgrimage ends, officials said.
Officials informed that the 52-day Amarnath Yatra, which began on June 29, has seen a record-breaking turnout, with over 4 lakh pilgrims visiting the Amarnath cave so far.
“Today, 11,755 pilgrims paid obeisance at the Amarnath cave shrine, bringing the total number of visitors since the yatra’s start to 407,734. Among the 11,755 pilgrims, there were 7,230 males, 2,597 females, 160 children, 170 Sadhus, one Sadhvi, and 1,597 security forces personnel,” they said.
Officials added that a fresh batch of 3,471 pilgrims departed from the Bhagwati Nagar Yatri Niwas early this morning. The convoy, consisting of 114 light and heavy vehicles, travelled towards the twin base camps under tight security.
This batch included 2,620 men, 720 women, three children, 93 Sadhus, 34 Sadhvis (female Sadhus), and one transgender person. Of these, 1,073 pilgrims left for the Baltal base camp at 3:00 AM, and 2,398 headed to the Pahalgam base camp at 3:45 AM. From these base camps, they will continue their journey to the holy cave. Officials are hopeful that this year the number will surpass half a million in the coming days.
Since the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB) assumed control of the yatra in 2001, the number of pilgrims has varied each year: 1.91 lakh in 2001, 1.10 lakh in 2002, 1.70 lakh in 2003, 4 lakh in 2004, 3.88 lakh in 2005, 3.47 lakh in 2006, 2.96 lakh in 2007, 5.33 lakh in 2008, 3.81 lakh in 2009, 4.55 lakh in 2010, 6.21 lakh in 2011, 6.35 lakh in 2012, 3.54 lakh in 2013, 3.72 lakh in 2014, 3.52 lakh in 2015, 2.21 lakh in 2016, 2.60 lakh in 2017, 2.85 lakh in 2018, 3.43 lakh in 2019, 3.04 lakh in 2022, 4.50 lakh in 2023.
The yatra was not held in 2020 and 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Meanwhile, the Chhari Mubarak of Amarnath Yatra was taken to Pahalgam on Sunday from its abode at the Dashnami Akhara building by Mahant Deependra Giri, the custodian of the Chhari Mubarak, for various rituals to mark Ashadh Purnima, the start of the religious aspects of the annual pilgrimage.
