LG Sinha to flag off first batch from Jammu today

Jammu, June 27: Amid unprecedented security arrangements, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha will flag off the first batch of Shri Amarnath Ji Yatra (SANJY)- 2024 from Yatri Niwas, Bhagwati Nagar – the base camp, in Jammu at 4.30 am tomorrow.

The annual yatra (pilgrimage) to the holy shrine nestled in the majestic South Kashmir Himalaya will begin from the 48-km Nunwan-Pahalgam route in Anantnag and the 14-km treacherous Baltal route in Ganderbal on Saturday.

This year 52-day yatra, beginning from June 29, will culminate on August 19- the day of Rakshabandhan.

LAYERED SECURITY IN PLACE

In the back-drop of fresh spate of terror attacks, the civil and police administration, working in a mission mode keeping in view any potential threat to the pilgrimage, have made unparalleled arrangements both in terms of security, logistics including lodgements, registration and other facilities to make Yatra a peaceful, incident-free and memorable experience for pilgrims.

As Director General of Police R R Swain too has maintained that detailed preparations and all kinds of contingency stratagems are in place to ensure a peaceful and secure Amarnath Yatra.

While speaking to the media in Ramban, after reviewing final security and other arrangements for SANJY-2024, Swain said, “For Amarnath Yatra, we have made detailed preparations pertaining to fool-proof security of camps, route, convoy, langars and lodgements by establishing access control (system) and setting up Quick Response Teams (QRTs) to ensure that it (Yatra) remains to be a peaceful and memorable affair.”

He asserted that their deliberations focussed not just on security related contingencies but exigencies related to all possible aspects including traffic, too were discussed in detail and stratagems were put in place. “We have prepared detailed cut-off timings to ensure smooth traffic flow and avoid any chaos or inconvenience to the pilgrims or concerned authorities due to violation of traffic advisory by the few. This puts the security of other pilgrims also in peril. See every place has a limitation, a particular capacity. Similarly the track, too, has a set capacity. So we have prepared it (advisory) in a balanced manner,” DGP said.

“This is our appeal to all to follow discipline and adhere to cut-off timings. This may cause a little inconvenience to the public or pilgrims but it will be negligible if we think and talk in terms of security and safety of life. They need to be given precedence over everything else,” DGP Swain said.

WILL DEFINITELY WIN WAR AGAINST TERRORISM

With regard to questions about neutralisation of three terrorists in Gandoh in Doda district on June 26, DGP described the encounter and the elimination of terrorists as “a very big success.”

“As ADGP Jammu (Anand Jain) too had earlier stated that it was a great success for us. We have reiterated a number of times that we will definitely win this war (against terrorism). To reach this objective, we may have to incur certain losses, but for it, the public, police, army, para-military forces – we all are in ready-mode. Working along with VDGs, SPOs in unison, we all, demonstrating a perfect synergy, had defeated them (terrorists) earlier also. We will repeat the same success story again and crush them. This is just a beginning,” DGP said.

SPECIAL ARRANGEMENTS TO FACILITATE PILGRIMS

High point of special and elaborate arrangements made for pilgrims this year is that in every district enroute Yatra, multiple lodgement and facilitation centres, medical centres have been set up with optimum use of advanced technology and well-equipped with communication systems.

State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) has established a camp at Udhampur to respond to any kind of emergency. 24X7 control rooms have been set up for monitoring purposes. Tourism department too has made special arrangements to utilise Yatra period for promoting scenic places of Jammu region to make pilgrimage a cherished experience for Yatris.

As per officials, layered security is in place in and around Bhagwati Nagar Yatra base camp, besides lodgement and registration centres across the city. Sensitive border points have been plugged. Security forces have completed their area domination exercises all along Yatra route and also along (Srinagar Jammu) National Highway and are in ready-mode to ensure peaceful Yatra.