Monday, June 23, 2008
Thousands of Hindus begin trek to Amarnath
Thousands of Hindu pilgrims chanted hymns as they set off to Amarnath shrine deep in Kashmir on June 17, despite fears of a possible militant attack on them.
Hundreds of policemen and soldiers were deployed along the 350-km ( 217.48 miles) route which runs through forests and mountains before reaching the shrine.
"We have made foolproof security and other arrangements for the pilgrims this year," Gulchain Singh Charak, a minister in the strife-torn Jammu and Kashmir state said on June 17.
Pilgrims have been targeted by Muslim militants several times since a violent rebellion against Indian rule broke out in Kashmir in 1989.
Last year, a shopkeeper was killed and dozens of people were wounded in two separate attacks on pilgrims.
During the two-month-long annual pilgrimage, devoutee Hindus walk and ride ponies or palanquins to the cave - situated at an altitude of 3,800 meters, to pray to Lord Shiva.
Kashmiri political separatist groups have said they will protest against a decision by the government to transfer nearly 100 acres of forest land to the Hindu shrine trust, Amarnath Shrine Board, for erecting shelters for the pilgrims.
"I want to make it clear to New Delhi that we won't allow anybody to occupy our land and we will fight it tooth and nail," Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Kashmir's chief cleric and chairman of All Parties Hurriyat (Freedom) Conference said.
To read the full article, click here...
To read the ePaper, visit: http://www.newsindia-times.com
Hundreds of policemen and soldiers were deployed along the 350-km ( 217.48 miles) route which runs through forests and mountains before reaching the shrine.
"We have made foolproof security and other arrangements for the pilgrims this year," Gulchain Singh Charak, a minister in the strife-torn Jammu and Kashmir state said on June 17.
Pilgrims have been targeted by Muslim militants several times since a violent rebellion against Indian rule broke out in Kashmir in 1989.
Last year, a shopkeeper was killed and dozens of people were wounded in two separate attacks on pilgrims.
During the two-month-long annual pilgrimage, devoutee Hindus walk and ride ponies or palanquins to the cave - situated at an altitude of 3,800 meters, to pray to Lord Shiva.
Kashmiri political separatist groups have said they will protest against a decision by the government to transfer nearly 100 acres of forest land to the Hindu shrine trust, Amarnath Shrine Board, for erecting shelters for the pilgrims.
"I want to make it clear to New Delhi that we won't allow anybody to occupy our land and we will fight it tooth and nail," Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Kashmir's chief cleric and chairman of All Parties Hurriyat (Freedom) Conference said.
To read the full article, click here...
To read the ePaper, visit: http://www.newsindia-times.com
Labels: Amarnath, begin, devotees, forest, Hindu pilgrims, kashmir, Lord Shiva, militant attack, security, trek
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