Amarnath Yatra is one of the most spiritual enlightenment places that you can visit while being on a pilgrimage tour in India.This is a 60-day long annual yatra that happens every year to embark the journey to the holy cave shrine of Amarnath in South Kashmir. This yatra in the Himalayas will begin on June 28 and will end on August 26. The decision to have a 60-day yatra this year was decided on at a meeting of the board presided over by SASB Chairman N N Vohra, who also happens to be the Governor of Jammu and Kashmir. Also, Board members Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Dr. Kapila Vatsyayan, Dr. (Prof.) Ved Kumari Ghai, Pt. Bhajan Sopori, Vijay Dhar, Ms. Sunita Narain, Dr. Devi Prasad Shetty, D.C. Raina, Prof. Chander Mouli Raina and by Umang Narula, Chief Executive Officer, Bhupinder Kumar, Additional Chief Executive Officer, and other senior officers of the Shrine Board attended this meeting. The board has also decided to file a review petition against the directions of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) regarding the conduct of this yatra. Keeping in mind the carrying capacity of the existing tracks and other available infrastructure that is in the area of yatra, the board has decided to allow 7, 500 pilgrims daily on every route from Pahalgam and Baltal to the holy shrine. This doesn’t include the pilgrims who are travelling by helicopter.
Also, for the registration of all the pilgrims, the board has designated 437 designated branches of Punjab National Bank, Jammu and Kashmir Bank and YES Bank that is located in the 32 states and Union Territories and has asked the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) to take all the necessary steps to start the Advance Registration of pilgrims with effect from March 1, 2018. The board has further directed the CEO to repeatedly publicise via electronic and print media, and advise the pilgrims to make sure that they timely secure the prescribed Compulsory Health Certificates that are issued by the doctors/ hospitals nominated by the state or UTC in which they live in. Also people below 13 and above 75 are not allowed to take this yatra.
