Over 4,600 pilgrims leave Jammu base camp to join Amarnath Yatra

Jammu: Amid heavy rains, more than 4,600 pilgrims left Jammu city in the early hours of Wednesday for the twin base camps in Kashmir to join the annual Amarnath Yatra, officials said.

This was the 13th batch of pilgrims that left the Bhagwati Nagar base camp here for Baltal and Pahalgam base camps in Kashmir.

The batch of 4,627 pilgrims left in 185 vehicles around 3 am amid chants of "Bum Bum Bholey". They were escorted by a CRPF contingent amid area dominations by the Army, the officials said.

While 2,773 pilgrims left in 95 vehicles through the 48-km traditional Pahalgam route, 1,854 devotees left in 90 vehicles via the shorter but steeper 14-km Baltal route, they said.

With this, a total of 72,325 pilgrims have left the Jammu base camp for the Valley since June 28, when Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha flagged off the first batch.

The 52-day yatra began on June 29 and will conclude on August 19.

More than 4.5 lakh pilgrims paid obeisance at the cave shrine last year.