13 Amarnath pilgrims injured in road mishap

At least 13 Amarnath pilgrims heading towards cave shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas were injured in a road accident in Udhampur area of Jammu region on Thursday morning.

Reports said that a vehicle carrying the pilgrims hit a truck parked on a roadside near Birma bridge along the Srinagar - Jammu national highway in Udhampur at around 5.30 am resulting in injuries to 13 passengers. The injured were taken to a hospital where the condition of two of them is stated to be critical, they said.

A police official said the pilgrims were part of a convoy carrying a fresh batch of 3,419 pilgrims including 680 women and 201 ‘sadhus’ from the Bhagwati Nagar base camp in Jammu to Kashmir to undertake the annual pilgrimage. Ten of the injured pilgrims are from Jhansi in Uttar Pradesh while three are from Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh, he said.

Till Wednesday evening nearly 1,34,000 pilgrims had paid obeisance at the Holy Cave. The 60-day annual pilgrimage began simultaneously on Pahalgam and Baltal routes on June 28 and will conclude on Shravan Purnima and Raksha Bandhan festivals on August 25.

Every year, lakhs of devotees go on a pilgrimage to the Amarnath cave to see a stalagmite formed inside, said to be a symbol of Lord Shiva. The yatra has traditionally symbolised the interfaith harmony for last one and half century as local Muslims have been receiving Hindu pilgrims with love and extending every possible help to make the pilgrimage a success.