JOIN USWith less than a week left for last darshan of the 39-day-long Amarnath yatra, more than six lakh pilgrims have taken part in the yatra so far.
Officials said 6,05,665 yatris had gone for darshan at the Holy Cave Shrine in south Kashmir by Friday evening as compared to 6,09,674 yatris who had paid obeisance at the Sanctum Sanctorum during the corresponding period of yatra 2011.
The yatra will culminate on Sawan Purnima coinciding with Raksha Bandhan on August 2 with the darshan of Charri Mubarak (holy mace of Lord Shiva) in cave shrine.
Meanwhile, Chhari Mubarak on Saturday left for the 3,880-metre high holy cave shrine. The saffron-robed mace was taken from its Dashnami Akhara abode at Budshah Chowk here to Pahalgam by a group of sadhus and pilgrims led by its custodian Mahant Deependra Giri, official sources said.
This year, 93 pilgrims lost their lives due to accidents and medical reasons. Official statement said 47 deaths took place on the Pahalgam-Chandanwari-Sheshnag route while 34 on the Baltal route and 12 pilgrims had passed away after admission to hospitals in Srinagar. Meanwhile, the team formulated by the Supreme Court to look into the reasons of rising pilgrim deaths on Saturday visited Pahalgam held detailed discussions.
With a few days left before the conclusion of the yatra, the smallest batch till now comprising 320 pilgrims on Saturday left for the cave shrine.