Jammu, 17 July (H.S.): A fresh batch of more than 4600 Shri Amarnath Yatra pilgrims on Friday left here from the Bhagwati Nagar Yatri Niwas base camp for the twin base camps of the cave shrine in the South Kashmir Himalayas amid tight security arrangements.

Officials said that 4640 pilgrims early this morning left the Jammu base camp in a fleet of 171 vehicles comprising Light Motor and Heavy Motor Vehicles.

The batch comprised 1626 pilgrims for Baltal and 3014 for Pahalgam left for the pilgrimage under a multi-layered security grid, with coordinated arrangements by the civil administration, police, security forces and the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board to ensure the Yatra is conducted safely, securely and smoothly.

Shri Amarnath Ji Yatra has set a historic new record, crossing the 3 lakh mark in just 14 days.

Jammu and Kashmir administration has also appealed to the pilgrims to perform the pilgrimage only after confirmed registration and on the scheduled date of Yatra as no unregistered pilgrim shall be allowed to proceed to the base camps.

Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha flagged off the first batch of Yatra on July 2 from Jammu.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Krishan Kumar