Amarnath Pilgrim tally crosses 4.55 lakh

Srinagar, Aug 1: No Amarnath Yatra convoy departed from the Bhagwati Nagar base camp in Jammu on Saturday as the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway remained closed following heavy rainfall.

Officials said Yatra convoy movement from Jammu was suspended after traffic was halted at the Ladha-Samroli stretch in Udhampur district, where incessant rains left the road surface slushy and unsafe for vehicular movement.

Despite the suspension from the Jammu side, the pilgrimage continued from the Kashmir side, with 8,493 pilgrims paying obeisance at the holy cave shrine during the day.

The pilgrims included 5,654 men, 2,513 women, 45 children, 39 sadhus, 29 sadhvis, five transgender devotees and 208 security personnel, officials said.

With Saturday’s pilgrims, the total number of devotees who have had darshan at the cave shrine since the commencement of the annual pilgrimage on July 3 has risen to 4,55,281.

The suspension of convoy movement from Jammu comes amid continued disruption on the national highway due to heavy rainfall, affecting the movement of pilgrims from the Jammu base camp towards the Valley.

Authorities are expected to resume convoy movement subject to restoration of the highway and improvement in road conditions.