The Amarnath Yatra has been called off early by authorities a week ahead of schedule due to the need for critical maintenance on the rain-damaged tracks amid inclement weather along the hilly terrain in Jammu and Kashmir.. The pilgrimage, which began on July 3, was originally set to conclude on August 9, coinciding with Raksha Bandhan.
Heavy rainfall damages both key routes
Officials said that recent heavy rainfall had severely affected both the Baltal and Pahalgam routes used by pilgrims. "Due to recent heavy rainfall and the need for track maintenance along both the Baltal and Pahalgam axes of the Shri Amarnathji Yatra route, the yatra movement has been closed on both the tracks," said Divisional Commissioner Kashmir, Vijay Kumar Bidhuri.
No resumption possible due to ongoing repairs
Bidhuri further explained that the ongoing deployment of men and machinery for repair work made it impossible to safely resume the yatra. "It has been observed that due to the continued deployment of men and machinery on the tracks from tomorrow, we would not be able to resume the yatra. The yatra will therefore remain suspended from August 3 onwards from both the routes," he said.
Pilgrim numbers this year
Despite the early closure, more than 410,000 pilgrims visited the Amarnath cave shrine this year. This marks a decline from last year’s figure, which stood at over 510,000. Authorities have assured that repair work will continue and have indicated that a thorough review of the infrastructure will be carried out ahead of next year’s yatra.
With inputs from PTI
