Amarnath Yatra was suspended on Friday from both Baltal and Pahalgam routes as four people were killed after a series of cloudbursts struck both the routes to the south Himalayan cave shrine in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday night.
However, as weather improved, the yatra resumed from the Pahalgam route.
A police official said three people were killed and several others went missing after a cloudburst hit Kullan, Sonamarg on Srinagar-Leh highway on Thursday night.
“The cloudburst led to washing away of several houses and several feet slush got accumulated on the highway. Several vehicles were also washed away. While three bodies have been retrieved so far, search for more bodies is underway,” he said.
The village, where the cloudburst hit, is situated on the highway that leads to the Baltal base camp of the yatra. The debris and slush forced the authorities to close Srinagar-Leh highway. Police and rescue teams rushed to the spot and evacuated the villagers.
In south Kashmir’s Anantnag district, a porter was killed when a cloudburst hit the Sheshnag area. Cloudbursts wreaked havoc by damaging property, crops and orchards. Two labourers were also injured on Pahalgam route.
Police said all the pilgrims were safe at transit camps set up along the north and south Kashmir routes.
Frequent cloudbursts in south Kashmir have led to sudden rise in water levels of Jhelum and its tributaries and causing flash floods. The Met office has forecast light to moderate rain in the next two days.
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