Why Vaishno Devi pilgrims not stopped despite warning: Omar Abdullah

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and the Jammu and Kashmir Congress have raised serious questions over why pilgrims were allowed to proceed towards the Vaishno Devi shrine despite multiple weather advisories and warnings about inclement conditions in the region.

At least 34 pilgrims were killed and several others injured when a landslide struck them en route to the holy shrine in the Trikuta hills.

Speaking to reporters, Omar Abdullah said, “Why were these people on the track? Why were they not stopped? Why were they not moved to a safe place? This has to be discussed later. We feel deep sorrow over the loss of precious lives.”

He pointed out that weather warnings had been issued days in advance. “Should we not have taken certain steps to save those lives?” he asked.

The Vaishno Devi landslide incident comes just days after a similar tragedy in Kishtwar, where at least 65 pilgrims en route to the Machail Mata temple were killed in a flash flood on August 14. That incident had already drawn criticism of the Kishtwar administration for not suspending the pilgrimage despite adverse weather conditions and multiple alerts issued by the Meteorological Department.

The Vaishno Devi shrine is managed by a Chief Executive Officer (CEO), and the Shrine Board is chaired by the Lieutenant Governor of J&K. The Met Centre in Srinagar had issued several warnings over the past week, stating that the Jammu region was likely to face cloudbursts, flashfloods and heavy rainfall due to a western disturbance.

Yatra was suspended: L-G

"The yatra was already suspended on Tuesday due to bad weather. A cloudburst occurred and devotees at Ardhkuwari were caught in it. We are providing aid to the bereaved families, " said L-G Manoj Sinha.