Pilgrims leave for 22-day long Manimahesh yatra to HP

Nearly 2,000 pilgrims today left from the Lakshmi Narayan temple here to undertake the traditional 22-day long pilgrimage through mountainous tracks to reach to Manimahesh in Himachal Pradesh, police said.
Adequate security and other arrangements have been put in place all along the yatra track for the annual pilgrimage which will see the devotees of Lord Shiva move from Bhaderwah to Himachal Pradesh, sub-divisional police officer Brijesh Sharma said.
The district administration has deployed adequate columns of police, special operations group and CRPF while some advance parties have also been deployed at half a dozen places, he said.
"Besides fool proof security arrangements, civil administration have also installed temporary tents at Bhejja, Padri and Bhadarwahi Goth for the pilgrims in view of incelment weather conditions sincelast one week," he said.

The pilgrims, who had gathered at the Lakshmi Narayan temple at Mandir Bazar from different parts of the Chenab valley, were seen off by senior civil and police officers besides others.
After leaving the Lakshmi Narayan temple, the devotees would make night halts at villages Bheja and Padri Meadows before entering Himachal Pradesh, where they will pay obeisance at the holy shrine ofManimahesh in Bharmod district.

"This is an ancient Yatra and a symbol of unique Nag culture. Despite motorable road, the devotees still prefer to go on foot with the holy mace. It takes a marathon 22 days to complete the pilgrimage," President, Sanatan Dharam Sabha, Bhadarwah, Ved Kumar Kotwal said.

He said thousands of devotees from different parts of the country converge every year to take part in historical Manimahesh and Kailash Yatra.
He said another group of pilgrims would leave for the yatra on August 7 on the occasion of Raksha bandhan in buses.
The high altitude Manimahesh Lake is the shrine believed to be the abode of Lord Shiva.