A fresh batch of 7,541 pilgrims set off early Tuesday from the Bhagwati Nagar base camp here towards the 3,880-metre-high cave shrine of Amarnath in south Kashmir Himalayas, officials said.
The 38-day annual pilgrimage, which commenced on July 3, is being conducted via two routes — the traditional 48-km Nunwan–Pahalgam track in Anantnag district and the shorter but steeper 14-km Baltal route in Ganderbal district. The yatra is scheduled to conclude on August 9.
According to officials, over 94,000 devotees have so far offered prayers at the holy cave shrine since the yatra began.
On Tuesday, the seventh batch comprising 5,516 men and 1,765 women left Jammu between 2.55 am and 4.05 am in 309 vehicles amid a multi-layered security arrangement.
The first convoy, carrying 3,321 pilgrims in 148 vehicles, departed for the Baltal route, while the second convoy of 4,220 pilgrims in 161 vehicles headed for the longer Nunwan–Pahalgam route.
Since Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha flagged off the first convoy on July 2, a total of 47,902 pilgrims have left the Jammu base camp for the valley.
Officials noted a huge rush at on-the-spot registration counters, prompting authorities to increase the number of counters from 12 to 15 and raise the daily quota to 4,100 to accommodate the surge in demand. Over 4,000 devotees arrived in Jammu on Monday alone to register themselves.
More than 3.5 lakh pilgrims have registered online so far. To facilitate the yatra, 34 accommodation centres have been established across Jammu, while over 100 lodgement centres from Lakhanpur to Banihal are providing boarding and lodging facilities for more than 50,000 people.
In terms of security, 580 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) — 30 more than in previous years — have been deployed to ensure the safety of the pilgrims. Additionally, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags are being issued to all yatris to track and manage their movement during the pilgrimage.
