The officials said the batches of pilgrims on the twin routes were flagged off by the respective deputy commissioners along with senior police and civil administration officials.

Amid the blowing of conch shells and chants of “Bum Bum Bhole”, “Jai Baba Burfani”, and “Har Har Mahadev”, the first batch of pilgrims left the base camp for the holy shrine located at an altitude of 12,756 feet above sea level.

Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha had flagged off the first batch of 4,603 pilgrims from the Yatri Niwas base camp in Bhagwati Nagar in Jammu on Friday morning.

The pilgrims reached the Kashmir Valley in the afternoon and received a rousing welcome from the administration and locals.

The pilgrims will pay obeisance at the cave shrine which houses the naturally formed ice-lingam. Stringent security arrangements have been put in place for the smooth conduct of the yatra.

See: First batch of pilgrims leave from Baltal, for the ‘darshan’ of Holy Amarnath cave.

See:  A large number of pilgrims en route from Baltal to Holy Amarnath cave.

Thousands of security personnel from the police, Central Reserve Police Force, Indo-Tibetan Border Police and other paramilitary forces have been deployed to ensure foolproof security. Aerial surveillance will also be carried out.

Meanwhile, the second batch of 1,881 pilgrims left the Bhagwati Nagar base camp amid tight security on Saturday, officials said.

The second batch, which included 427 women and 294 seers, left in 200 vehicles in two separate convoys escorted by security forces, the officials said.

While the first convoy carrying 1,069 devotees to Baltal left at 4 am, the second with 812 pilgrims started its journey to Pahalgam 30 minutes later.

More than 4.5 lakh pilgrims paid their obeisance at the cave shrine last year.

PM Modi greets Amarnath Yatra pilgrims

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday greeted pilgrims on the start of the Amarnath Yatra, saying the ‘darshan’ of Lord Shiva is known to infuse immense energy in his followers.

“My heartfelt best wishes to all pilgrims on the commencement of the holy Amarnath Yatra. This yatra associated with the darshan of Baba Barfani infuses immense energy in the devotees of Lord Shiva. May all devotees prosper with his blessings. Jai Baba Barfani,” Modi said in a post on X in Hindi.

This year, the 52-day-long pilgrimage would culminate on August 19. The online registrations for the 52-day-long yatra began on April 15 on Shri Amarnath Shrine Board’s (SASB) website and portal.

Yatra amid tight security and elaborate arrangements

Comprehensive arrangements, including three-tier security, area dominations, elaborate route deployment and checkpoints, have been made to ensure a smooth yatra. According to reports, more than 3.50 lakh people have registered for this year’s yatra. As many as 125 community kitchens (langars) have been set up along the two routes to the cave shrine and are supported by over 6,000 volunteers.

The Amarnath Yatra, which takes place every year amid tight security and vigil, takes place from twin tracks – the traditional 48-km-long Nunwan-Pahalgam route in Anantnag district and the 14-km-long shorter but steep Baltal route in Ganderbal district.

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__Inputs from PTI, ANI and HT.