A woman pilgrim was killed after being hit by a shooting stone on the Baltal route, while the Indian Army rescued about 3,500 Amarnath pilgrims who were stranded due to landslides and heavy rains on the yatra route.
In a high-stakes mission to ensure safe and smooth conduct of the 38-day annual Amarnath Yatra, the Indian Army has deployed more than 50 counter-drone and electronic warfare systems to neutralise potential aerial threats.
Having been declared a ‘No flying Zone’ in veiw of security concerns, the helicopter service will not be available to the pilgrims this time for reaching the mountain cave shrine of Amarnath in Kashmir.
Elaborate security arrangements have been made for the safe passage of the convoy of buses and light motor vehicles from here through the nearly 300 kilometers Jammu-Srinagar highway.
Around 1.60 lakh pilgrims from across the country have so far visited the cave shrine.
Around 50,000 Amarnath pilgrims are stranded at different places due to bad weather and closure of roads because of landslides. The Army, J&K Police, para military forces, NDRF and SDRF were taking care of the stranded people.
Continuous heavy rainfall in various regions over the past few days raised the water level of the Chenab River, which washed away their makeshift
The Lt Governor directed the concerned departments to make all necessary services accessible to the pilgrims at railway stations, airports, on travel routes and Yatra base camps.
The facility is being developed at Majeen Jammu under the CSR initiative of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC) at a cost of Rs 51 crore.
The NGT, in its notice, has said that as per the environmental rules, it is forbidden to set up such tents in the river area so that no accident takes place.
