BARAMULLA : As soon as traffic on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway resumed after being shut down for a day, 999 more pilgrims set out for the Amarnath cave shrine in Kashmir early on Thursday, according to officials.
Following a significant landslide near Maroog in Ramban district at 3 am on Wednesday, the 270-km-long highway—the only all-weather route connecting Kashmir with the rest of the nation—remained closed for more than 18 hours, they added.
The restoration work, according to the officials, was frequently impeded throughout the day by regular stone-firing from the hilltop above the roadway, which was, however, partially opened in the late evening for stranded motorists.Fresh traffic was permitted this morning from both Jammu and Srinagar, according to a traffic department official, after all stuck vehicles were moved.
The officials added that following the highway’s opening, authorities permitted the 37th group of Amarnath pilgrims to depart from the Bhagwati Nagar base camp for the Valley at roughly 3.30 am in a convoy of 33 vehicles.
They stated that 577 pilgrims are travelling from the traditional path in Anantnag district to the Pahalgam base camp, while 422 devotees are travelling to the Baltal base camp in Ganderbal district.
Since the 62-day yatra’s beginning on July 1, around 4.28 lakh pilgrims have so far made their way to the 3,880-meter-high Amarnath cave sanctuary.
