Covid-19: Decision on Amarnath yatra likely next week

This year the SASB was expecting six lakh pilgrims at the holy cave shrine

As registration for the upcoming Amarnath Yatra continues to remain suspended in the wake of the second wave of the Covid-19 crisis, the governing body is likely to take a decision next week whether to allow the pilgrimage at full scale or curtail it.

The 56-day-long annual pilgrimage to the 3888-metre-high Amarnathji cave shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas, which was cancelled last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, is scheduled from June 28 to August 22.

Due to a huge surge in Covid-19 cases and deaths across the country, including Jammu and Kashmir, Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB), which manages the affairs of the pilgrimage, suspended the registration of pilgrims on April 22 which had started on April 1.

Also read: Amarnath yatra registration suspended over Covid surge

Like most parts of the country, a strict lockdown to prevent the further spread of Covid infections remains intact in J&K. The lockdown in the union territory (UT) was imposed on April 29.

Last year, the pilgrimage was cancelled on July 21 because of the rise in Covid 19 cases.

Sources told DH that the SASB is likely to hold a meeting next week where it would decide whether to hold yatra at full scale or with a limited number of pilgrims.

This year the SASB was expecting six lakh yatries to pay obeisance at the holy cave shrine, which would have been the largest number since the governing body took over the affairs of the pilgrimage in the year 2000.

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“However, keeping in view the prevailing Covid crisis, it is unlikely that such a huge number of pilgrims would be allowed to participate in the yatra this year. If Covid situation improves in the next two or three weeks, a limited number of pilgrims will be allowed to pay obeisance at the holy Cave shrine from mid-July onwards,” they added.

In 2019, the pilgrimage was curtailed ahead of the scrapping of J&K’s special status under Article 370 as the erstwhile state was locked down and a communications blackout was imposed.

Political and religious gatherings have been cited among the reasons for the surge of the second wave of Covid-19 infections in India.

On April 17, the Mahamandleshwar, or head of Juna Akhada, the largest of the 13 sects of seers, Swami Avdheshanand Giri, was reportedly forced to declare the conclusion of the Mahakumbh in Haridwar amid the surge in Covid-19 cases.