Srinagar, July 7 (IANS) The annual Amarnath Yatra, since its inception on July 2, continues to witness an overwhelming response as the total number of pilgrims crossed the 1 lakh mark on Tuesday, in just five days of pilgrimage.

The unprecedented turnout of devotees is evident from the rising number of footfalls as the devotees march towards the 3,880-metre-high cave shrine in the Southern Himalayas to pay obeisance at the holy cave.

According to official figures, the number of pilgrims crossed the 1 lakh mark on Tuesday afternoon.

“Till 1 PM today, 15,947 pilgrims paid obeisance at the holy cave shrine via the Baltal and Chandanwari routes, taking the cumulative number of devotees to 1,01,706,” said an official release.

Meanwhile, the largest batch of pilgrims, comprising 8,815 devotees, including 31 foreign nationals, left the Bhagwati Nagar base camp on Tuesday for the pilgrimage amidst tight security.

The sixth batch comprised 5,831 men, 2,193 women, 31 children, 598 sadhus, 131 sadhvis and 31 foreign nationals.

According to officials, over 90,000 pilgrims have completed their ‘darshan’ at the holy cave in the last four days of the pilgrimage.

Tuesday’s convoy was the largest since the beginning of the pilgrimage. The second largest batch was of 6,721 pilgrims on Sunday, while similar batches of 5,794 pilgrims and 4,812 left on July 6 and on July 4, respectively.

Since the inception of pilgrimage, there has been a huge rush of pilgrims at the base camps as well as at halting stations. There has been a lot of activity here, with thousands of pilgrims from across the country reaching these twin camps on a daily basis.

At the Bhagwati Nagar base camp, one could hear the devotees shouting slogans like “Bam Bam Bhole”, “Har Har Mahadev” and “Jai Barfani Baba Ki” with their chants echoing through the mountains.

Elaborate and extensive arrangements have been made for the pilgrims at base camps and halting stations. Extensive security measures are in place from Pahalgam to the Baltal base camp up to the holy cave.

A four-tier security system has been in place with the Army and ITBP personnel manning the upper reaches and twin tracks. The CRPF, along with J&K police personnel are managing the base camps.

The 57-day pilgrimage to the holy cave shrine is scheduled to conclude on August 28, coinciding with the festival of Raksha Bandhan.

–IANS

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