Largest Amarnath Yatra group embarks, Saina Nehwal joins pilgrimage

Over 9,200 pilgrims, the largest batch so far, embarked on the Amarnath Yatra from the base camp early on Thursday morning. The pilgrims are headed to the Amarnath shrine, located in the south Kashmir Himalayas.
The contingent included 6,035 pilgrims travelling in a convoy of 194 vehicles to Pahalgam, and another convoy of 112 vehicles carrying 3,206 pilgrims left for the Baltal base camp at 3:30 am. Since June 30, a total of 65,544 pilgrims have departed from the Jammu base camp, and 1,46,508 have offered prayers at the shrine since July 1. The 62-day annual pilgrimage, which began on July 1, is set to conclude on August 31.
After the suspension of Tatkal registration for three days due to inclement weather and necessary repairs on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway, hundreds of people swarmed the on-the-spot booking counters as registration resumed on Wednesday. Despite the heat and long queues, devotees, including women, patiently waited for registration tokens. Over 1,500 unregistered pilgrims have been registered so far for the Yatra. However, many pilgrims voiced concerns about the inadequate number of counters and lack of shelter and drinking water facilities at registration sites.
The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) has ramped up security measures for the pilgrimage, deploying personnel equipped with the latest technology. CRPF Deputy Inspector General Alok Avasthy assured that the security of the people remains their top priority, with or without the Yatra.
Furthermore, renowned badminton player Saina Nehwal, along with her mother, undertook the pilgrimage on Wednesday. Expressing her gratitude to the J-K administration, the Shrine Board, and the security forces, Nehwal said she felt blessed and bestowed with positivity, strength, and peace of mind after her darshan at the holy cave shrine.