21 June,2021 05:35 PM IST | New Delhi | mid-day online correspondent
People walking up to the holy cave shrine of Amarnath. Pic/AFP
The Liueutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir Manoj Sinha announced that the annual Amarnath pilgrimage will not take place this year due to the coronavirus outbreak.
A detailed discussion was held with the members of the shrine board on the present Covid-19 situation before the decision.
Lt Governor Manoj Sinha, who is also Chairman of Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board, held deliberations with Chief Secretary Dr. Arun Kumar Mehta, DGP, Dilbag Singh, Principal Secretary, Home, Shaleen Kabra, and Principal Secretary to Lt Governor, Nitishwar Kumar, who is also the CEO of Shrine Board.
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The yatra stood cancelled last year too.
However, online darshan will be facilitated for devotees worldwide and all rituals will take place in the holy cave shrine in South Kashmir's Anantnag district as per practice.
"It is important to save people's lives. So, it is not advisable to hold and conduct this year's pilgrimage in the larger public interest. Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board is aware of and respect the sentiments of millions of devotees, and to keep the sentiments alive, the Board shall continue the live telecast of morning and evening aarti from the Holy Cave shrine," the Lt Governor said.
"Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board has been assessing the Covid-19 situation in the Union Territory and the country. Our focus is on containing the pandemic and strengthening health infrastructure," the shrine CEO said.
Nitishwar Kumar said that both morning telecast of aarti at 6 a.m. and evening aarti at 5 p.m., each for 30 minutes, is to be live-streamed on the shrine board's website and the app specifically dedicated for the devotees.
The devotees can pay their virtual obeisance to the holy ice 'Lingam' online through the shrine board's link www.shriamarnathjishrine.com/AartiLive.html. The same may also be streamed through the its mobile app which may be downloaded through the link https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?idcom.ncog.shriamarnath from the Google Play Store.
The 56-day pilgrimage to the 3,880-metre-high shrine was scheduled to start from the twin routes of Pahalgam and Baltal from June 28 and culminate on August 28.
The registration for the yatra started on April 1 but was put on hold from April 22 due to the pandemic.
