Amarnath Yatra to begin on July 3

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The announcement was made during the 48th SASB board meeting, chaired by Lt Governor Manoj Sinha at Raj Bhawan. The meeting was attended by Swami Avdheshanand Giri Maharaj, DC Raina, Kailash Mehra Sadhu, KN Rai, Pitambar Lal Gupta, Shailesh Raina and Prof Vishwamurti Shastri, who are members of the shrine board.

Discussions in the meeting focused on enhancing facilities and services for devotees. In anticipation of a higher pilgrim turnout in 2025, the board proposed increasing lodgement capacity at centres in Jammu, Srinagar and other key locations. Plans were also made for the operationalisation of Yatri facilitation centres, enabling e-KYC, RFID card issuance and on-the-spot registrations at multiple locations, including Nowgam and Katra Railway Stations.

The board also emphasised improving facilities at Baltal, Pahalgam, Nunwan and Pantha Chowk in Srinagar. Reviewing the progress of ongoing infrastructure projects, Lt Governor Sinha directed officials to ensure adequate arrangements and amenities along the yatra route. He also stressed the expansion of Yatri Niwas at Pantha Chowk, Srinagar, to accommodate the increasing number of pilgrims.

Discussions also covered insurance coverage for pilgrims, service providers and ponies, as well as expansion of online services by the shrine board. Other key topics included the widening and maintenance of yatra tracks, decongestion at the Holy Cave, disaster preparedness, heli services, medical care, weather forecasting infrastructure, security arrangements and a digital prepaid system for hiring services.

A detailed presentation on yatra arrangements was given by Mandeep K Bhandari, Chief Executive Officer of SASB. The meeting was also attended by Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo, Additional Chief Secretary (Jal Shakti Department) Shaleen Kabra, DGP Nalin Prabhat, Principal Secretary (Home) Chandraker Bharti, along with administrative secretaries, divisional commissioners of Jammu and Kashmir and the deputy commissioners of Ganderbal and Anantnag.