Union Home Minister Amit Shah will chair a high-level meeting in Delhi on Friday to review and check security preparations and arrangements for the Amarnath Yatra 2023, which is scheduled to start from July 1 to August 31 in Jammu and Kashmir, reported news agency PTI. Shah will review the preparations for the pilgrimage, where top officials of the central government and Jammu and Kashmir administration will be present, said sources as quoted by PTI. The Home Minister will also take stock of the plans that are being formulated to ensure foolproof security for the pilgrimage, as per the sources.
The 62-day-long annual pilgrimage to the holy cave shrine of Amarnath, located at a height of 3,880 metres in the south Kashmir Himalayas, will begin on July 1 and continue till August 31.
Shah, along with all other stakeholders of the pilgrimage, are expected to take part in the meeting to discuss all matters related to arrangements being made for the Amarnath Yatra 2023, reported PTI.
Sources, as reported by PTI, said there have been some intelligence inputs that the Pakistan-based terror outfits may try to disrupt the pilgrimage for which adequate security forces will be deployed.
They further said they will ensure proper security arrangements to avoid a situation like last year, in which 16 people were killed after flash floods triggered by heavy rain near the shrine, reported PTI.
Meanwhile, the National Disaster Response Force has already started identifying ideal locations for setting up pilgrim camps keeping in mind any possible unforeseen natural disaster during the upcoming pilgrimage.
In order to avoid any such untoward incidents, the Indian Air Force helicopters are expected to be deployed to carry out aerial sorties in the upper reaches of the holy cave to check for glacial events and the formation of lakes that may trigger flash floods downhill.
Last year also, several sorties were conducted only after the flash floods occurred in June.
However, this time, the exercise will be undertaken before the start of the Yatra and it will continue at regular intervals during the two-month pilgrimage, the sources said as reported by the news agency.
A team with the proper expertise in remote sensing and satellite, hydrology and disaster response is expected to conduct the aerial surveys. They will take further measures along the pilgrimage route near the cave shrine after a dangerous water build-up is spotted, reported PTI.
Meanwhile, a lot of snow has already been detected on both the tracks Baltal and Pahalgam. These two tracks lead to the holy cave and therefore the Border Roads Organisation has been given the task to clear the snow by June 15, the sources said.
Last year, around 3.45 lakh people and pilgrims visited the holy cave and the figure is only expected to increase to 5 lakh this year, reported PTI.