Baba Budha Amarnath Yatra flagged off, 651 pilgrims leave for Poonch
Tthe 14-vehicle convoy from Bhagwati Nagar base camp in the presence of additional director general of police Anand Jain
Amid tight security arrangements, at least 651 pilgrims left for the ancient shrine of Baba Budha Amarnath in Poonch’s Mandi.
Amid religious hymns and slogans, Jammu divisional commissioner (DC) Ramesh Kumar flagged off the 14-vehicle convoy from Bhagwati Nagar base camp here in the presence of additional director general of police Anand Jain and several Bajrang Dal and Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) leaders.
The annual pilgrimage will conclude on August 20.
“All arrangements have been made for the pilgrims and security forces have made tight security arrangements,” Kumar said, adding that pilgrims will be provided food and accommodation throughout the Yatra.
Kulbhushan Kumar, a pilgrim from Indore, said, “We are happy with the arrangements and there is no fear among the devotees.”
Another pilgrim Ashok Lambodiya also expressed gratitude to the UT administration and security forces for all the arrangements.
“We have come back from Amarnath cave shrine and are now going to pay obeisance to Baba Budha Amarnath in Poonch. We are truly blessed to be here,” said Meenakshi Sathe from Ahmedabad.
The 651 pilgrims largely hailed from Karnataka, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.
The temple shrine of Baba Budha Amarnath is located in Poonch district’s Mandi.
Notably, the Jammu region since June 9 has witnessed a sudden spike in terror attacks.
