Amarnath Yatra 2022: J&K Government to provide tent townships, oxygen booths to pilgrims

New Delhi: According to the Union Home Ministry, the Jammu and Kashmir government is making elaborate arrangements for devotees undertaking the Amarnath yatra this year.

The Ministry of Home Affairs revealed the government’s plan of setting up eight pre-fabricated tent townships at the base camp of Baltal and along the route, keeping a large number of devotees in mind. The tents will be similar to Prayagraj’s Kumbh Mela.

The J & K administration will set up a 100-bed makeshift hospital in Srinagar and two 30-bed makeshift hospitals along the route. The government will provide oxygen booths on the Yatra route for the pilgrims, with 2 to 3 isolation centres for the Covid-infected pilgrims.

All pilgrims will be given Radio Frequency Identification tags (RFID) with a control room in Srinagar to monitor the pilgrim activity during the journey to the holy shrine. The tags will also be provided to vehicles at the entry point at Lakhanpur to ensure security tracks the movement of vehicles.

The State government also plans to erect 25 towers for a better communication network and will issue six hourly weather forecasts to communicate with pilgrims in case of bad weather conditions. The government also plans to increase the frequency of helicopter services.

According to the Ministry, nearly 145000 pilgrims registered with the Amarnath Shrine Board, and four to five lakh pilgrims are expected at the Yatra this year.

The officials also revealed that the Union Home Minister, Amit Shah, is expected to review all the facilities, including security arrangements before the pilgrimage begins. The Amarnath Yatra will commence on June 30, 2022.

(Avya Mathur)