The first group of pilgrims on the annual Amarnath Yatra left the Yatri Niwas base camp in Bhagwati Nagar, Jammu, on Wednesday morning and proceeded to the Pahalgam and Baltal base camps in Kashmir under the direction of Manoj Sinha, the lieutenant governor of Jammu and Kashmir.
“Flagged off the first group of pilgrims as they left Jammu base camp for Shri Amarnath Ji Cave Shrine. On his Twitter account, LG Sinha stated, “Prayed for the peace, prosperity, and a safe spiritual journey for pilgrims.
The first wave departed the base camp under heavy protection, escorted by paramilitary personnel riding in security vehicles.
The 43-day long pilgrimage, being held after a gap of two years due to Covid pandemic, to the cave shrine will begin from twin base camps in Kashmir on Thursday and will conclude on August 11.
From July 1 to August 1, 2019, over 3.42 lakh pilgrims paid obeisance at the shrine before the government cancelled the pilgrimage midway ahead of the abrogation of Article 370 and the division of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union territories.