7,000 perform Yatra as another batch of 15,000 reaches Baltal base camp

A day after 7,000 pilgrims had 'Darshan' inside the Amarnath Cave Shrine, another batch of 15,000 Yatris reached the north Kashmir base camp early on Thursday, an official said.

"Over 15,000 Yatris have reached the Baltal base camp today (Thursday) morning, while over 7,000 Yatris had 'Darshan' inside the holy cave yesterday," an official of the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB), which manages the affairs of the annual pilgrimage, told IANS on Thursday.

The official said the decision to allow another batch of pilgrims from Bhagwati Nagar Yatri Niwas would be taken later on Thursday.

So far, over 1,45,000 pilgrims have performed the Amarnath Yatra this year since it started on July 2. Due to the prevailing law and order situation in the Kashmir Valley, the Yatra remained suspended for two days.

Despite heightened tensions after the death of Hizbul commander Burhan Wani, no Yatri has been attacked anywhere in the Valley.

Local Muslims defied curfew restrictions on Wednesday to rescue 20 injured Amarnath pilgrims on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway near the Bijbehara town.

Risking their own lives, locals used private vehicles to carry the injured to the hospital.

The goodwill gesture by Muslims of Bijbehara town comes at a time when the town is mourning the death of two locals killed in security forces firing on protesters.

--IANS

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