BRO extends road connectivity up to Amarnath Cave

Baltal, Nov 5: The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) has completed the widening of the road from Dumail to the Amarnath Cave via Baltal base camp in Ganderbal district, marking a significant milestone in the project.

The BRO has created history by expanding road connectivity up to the Amarnath Cave shrine.

It is also for the first time that the BRO would be maintaining the twin tracks of Amarnath.

Earlier, the J&K government’s Public Works Department (PWD) was maintaining the Baltal shrine track in Ganderbal district and the Pahalgam Development Authority (PDA) was maintaining the Pahalgam shrine route in Anantnag district.

In September last year, the AmarnathYatra tracks were handed over to the BRO for both maintenance and upgradation.

The BRO has expertise in working on the mountainous track.

It has been working on several roads along the Sino-Indian border in Eastern Ladakh and other states where India shares the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China.

The road widening project was undertaken to alleviate the difficulties faced by the yatris who traditionally had to travel to the Amarnath Cave on foot.

This development is poised to make the yatra more comfortable and accessible for devotees in the coming years, official sources said.

BRO’s Project Beacon is involved in the restoration and improvement of the AmarnathYatra tracks.

“BRO personnel completed the formidable task and created history with the first set of vehicles reaching the Amarnath Cave,” BRO posted on X.

Sources in BRO who are entrusted with the responsibility of maintaining the Baltal-Amarnath Cave route said that the road widening and upgradation work which started in May this year after snow clearance had almost been completed.

“The road widening from Dumail to Amarnath Cave has been completed. The upgradation work is on and includes protection walls at slide-prone areas and further maintenance,” the sources said.

“The yatris visiting the Amarnath Cave would soon be able to access it through a vehicular road,” the sources in the BRO said. “As a trial, a tipper dozer and camper vehicles successfully reached the Amarnath Cave, showcasing the improved accessibility.”

At present, most of the yatris opt for the traditional route to the Amarnath Cave via Pahalgam.

Most of the yatris prefer this route as it is not only a bit easier than the Baltal one but also scenic.

On the other hand, the trek via Baltal usually takes a day to complete.

The trek is steep and the roads are narrow, making this route more difficult than the other one.

This route is usually preferred by youngsters.

The elderly take the help of ponies or palanquins to make their journey.

Thousands of yatris take part in the two-month yatra every year.

ShriAmarnath Shrine Board (SASB) has constantly been striving for the development of the twin tracks leading to the Amarnath Cave – one from Baltal which is 14 km and another from Pahalgam, which is traditional but 48 km long. Besides the development, maintenance and management of yatra tracks, the SASB has constantly been generating more facilities for the AmarnathYatris.