Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Sunday, June 19, 2022, reviewed arrangements for the upcoming Amarnath Yatra in Ramban district of Jammu and Kashmir and said technology is being used to timely detect any "suspicious vehicle or movement" to ensure a peaceful pilgrimage.
The 43-day-long yatra to the 3,880-meter-high cave shrine of Amarnath is scheduled to start on June 30 from the twin routes of the traditional 48-km Nunwan in south Kashmir's Pahalgam and the 14-km shorter Baltal in central Kashmir's Ganderbal.
"A meeting with the Ramban district administration took place with focus on Amarnath Yatra. Since Ramban is the highway town and all the pilgrims are going to pass through the district (along Jammu-Srinagar national highway), the preparedness and arrangements were discussed in detail,” Singh told reporters after chairing the meeting.
Expressing satisfaction over the arrangements, the Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office said the district administration has made pre-emptive preparations to ensure a peaceful yatra.
"As far as security arrangements are concerned, technology is being put in place to timely detect any suspicious vehicle or movement,” he said.
Referring to the ongoing work on the four-laning of the highway and the recent incidents of landslide, he emphasised that a dash board must be prepared for the pilgrims for the real-time information related to weather forecasts and traffic updates.
The Union Minister also told the district administration that social media should be used for updating pilgrims so that they can plan their journey accordingly.
"After a long time, the yatra is taking place for such a long duration and heavy footfall of pilgrims is expected during the yatra,” he said and expressed satisfaction over the construction of a new Yatri Niwas at Chanderkote in Ramban.
During the meeting, Mr. Singh said the latest technology like RFIDs which have been made compulsory in this year's yatra will help in real-time monitoring of pilgrims by tracking them enroute to the cave shrine.
Community kitchens
Deputy Commissioner of Ramban Mussarat Islam informed the meeting that 33 ‘langars' (community kitchens) from Nashri to Lamber (Banihal) for the pilgrims have been constructed with a capacity to 30,000 people.
Senior Superintendent of Police of Ramban Mohita Sharma said security-related arrangements are also being put in place for this year's yatra with installation of CCTVs, deployment of CRPF and ITBP at important locations.
