Amarnath Yatra Halted Due to Heavy Rain Shortly After Resumption

The Amarnath Yatra was suspended again shortly after resumption on Monday due to heavy rainfall at Panjtarni and near the holy cave. A fresh batch of pilgrims left for Kashmir valley from the Bhagwati Nagar base camp of Jammu at 5 am on Monday.

The yatra resumed after a cloudburst that triggered flash floods on Friday near the cave, in which at least 16 people lives and around 40 people are still missing.

Deputy Commissioner Jammu, Avny Lavasa, had asked all the Yatris registered on or before July 11 to move to the Bhagwati Nagar base camp.

Government sources had earlier told CNN-News18 that the local administration was keen to restart the Amarnath Yatra by Monday or Tuesday. “There should not be unnecessary hurdles for people who are already booked for the trip,” the sources said, adding that officials also felt assured about the road conditions to begin the Yatra again.

Jammu and Kashmir Lt Governor Manoj Sinha on Sunday visited the Nunwan base camp at Pahalgam to oversee efforts for the resumption of Amarnath yatra. Sinha will camp overnight at Nunwan to oversee rescue and relief operations and efforts being made to resume the yatra as soon as possible, an official spokesperson said. Sinha also interacted with yatris staying there and reviewed arrangements at healthcare facilities and ‘langars’, the official added.

Meanwhile, rescuers said hopes of finding those missing in the Amarnath flash floods alive are fading by the hour despite making last-ditch efforts to look for any survivor. “The rescue operations are going on as personnel from various agencies are clearing the debris in the hope of finding any survivor,” a State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) official told PTI. “We are still hopeful but anyone still alive under that debris will be a miracle,” the official added. Besides sniffer dogs, the rescuers are also using hand-held thermal imagers and other sophisticated devices to check for any sign of life under the mounds of debris.

The Army has also pressed heavy machinery into service to restore the track to the holy cave shrine, reports said.

Dramatic visuals showed the exact moment the flashflood hit the camp site where hundreds of devotees were staying during their onward journey. In one such video, water is seen rushing towards the tents and people are seen trying to escape amid shouts, and cries for help.

A day after the tragedy, Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha chaired a high level meeting on Saturday to review the ongoing rescue and relief operation.

The annual 43-day pilgrimage had commenced from the twin base camps, Nunwan-Pahalgam in south Kashmir’s Anantnag and Baltal in central Kashmir’s Ganderbal, on June 30.

Over one lakh pilgrims have offered prayers at the cave shrine, housing the naturally formed ice ‘shivling’, according to reports. A total of 69,535 pilgrims have left in 10 batches from the Bhagwati Nagar base camp in Jammu for the Valley since June 29, the day the first batch of pilgrims was flagged off by Lt Governor Manoj Sinha.

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