Spiritual ambience gripped Jammu ahead of the annual Amarnath yatra, set to commence on July 2 (Shivratri) and conclude on August 18 (Shravan Purnima and Raksha Bandhan).
Sadhus started coming to Jammu to get registered for the yatra and the administration arranged their stay in different religious buildings and community halls. On-the-spot registration was arranged at Ram Mandir at Purani Mandi.
Looking at the massive response of pilgrims, the state administration introduced token system at Sangam banquet hall near the railway station for on-the-spot registration.
Simrandeep Singh, Deputy Commissioner (DC), Jammu, said, “Pilgrims who have not registered themselves have to get tokens from Sangam. Tokens will be provided to them according to availability of date for journey. This token system will help us manage chaos at the on-the-spot registration counter.”
After getting tokens from Sangam, pilgrims would have to get registered at the counter allotted to them on the specific time. Vaishnavi Dham and Sarasvati Dham at the railway station and Mahajan Sabha in Shalamar would be open for on-the-spot registration.
The DC added that of the total quota of 15,000 pilgrims for the first day, 14,000 had already got registered for the first batch. The first batch would be flagged off from Yatri Niwas, Bhagwati Nagar, on July 1.
Arrangements had been made at Yatri Niwas. The Department of Tourism arranged some cultural events for pilgrims to introduce them to local culture.
“All arrangements have been made. We have renovated Yatri Niwas and installed sheds for langar and security personnel. Water and electricity have been ensured and other issues taken into consideration,” said the DC.
Jammu gears up to welcome Amarnath Pilgrims
