Jammu, July 6 (IANS) More than 1.50 lakh pilgrims paid obeisance at the Amarnath cave shrine in the last seven days as another batch of 5,871 devotees left for the Valley on Saturday.

Officials of the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB), which manages the affairs of the annual pilgrimage to the Himalayan cave shrine, said that over 1.50 lakh pilgrims have performed the ongoing Yatra in seven days so far.

“Another batch of 5,871 Yatris left Bhagwati Nagar Yatri Niwas in Jammu for the Valley today in two escorted convoys. Of these, the first escorted convoy of 2,112 Yatris left at 2.50 a.m. in 110 vehicles for the north Kashmir Baltal base camp while another escorted convoy of 134 vehicles carrying 3,759 Yatris left at 3.50 a.m. for south Kashmir Nunwan (Pahalgam) base camp,” the officials said.

“The Yatra has been going on smoothly without any interruption since it started on June 29,” they added.

The weather department has forecast generally cloudy weather on both the Yatra routes with the possibility of light rain and thundershowers during the day.

Yatris take either the 48 km long traditional Pahalgam-Cave Shrine route or the shorter 14 km long Baltal-Cave shrine route to perform the Yatra.

Those using the Pahalgam route take four days to reach the cave shrine while those taking the Baltal route reach back to the base camp the same day after having ‘Darshan’ inside the cave shrine.

The cave shrine situated 3,888 metres above sea level houses an ice stalagmite structure that wanes and waxes with the phases of the moon.

Devotees believe that the ice stalagmite structure symbolises the mythical powers of Lord Shiva.

Extensive arrangements for security have been made this year all along the nearly 300 km long Jammu-Srinagar highway, at the twin Yatra routes, at the two base camps and at the cave shrine to ensure smooth and incident-free pilgrimage.

–IANS

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Bhubaneswar, July 6 (IANS) The stage is all set for the grand annual Rath Yatra or the chariot festival of Lord Jagannath and his siblings, scheduled to begin on Sunday, in the holy coastal city of Puri in Odisha.

Hundreds of traditional carpenters and painters are busy giving finishing touches to the three huge chariots of the Lords.

“The Rath Yatra, observed on the second day of the bright fortnight of Ashadha month of the Hindu calendar every year, is the most important festival of Jagannath temple when the holy triad embarks on the annual nine-day sojourn to their birthplace, Gundicha Temple (the Yagnya Vedi or the Garden house of the Lord) around three kilometres far from the Jagannath Temple. The devotees cutting across all the sects and creeds get a glimpse of the divine siblings during the Rath Yatra,” Jagannath culture researcher, Bhaskar Mishra, told IANS.

As per the tradition, Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabadhra and Devi Subhadra fall sick after the three are bathed with 108 pitchers full of scented water during the Snan Yatra on the full moon day of the Jyeshtha month in the Hindu calendar (considered as the birthday of the Lord Jagannath).

The deities remain in seclusion and devotees are not allowed to have the darshan of the holy triad for 15 days, popularly known as the ‘Anasara’ period, when some secret rituals are performed by a particular group of servitors called ‘Daitapati’.

The holy siblings are usually offered ayurvedic herbs, fruits etc. so that they recuperate fast from fever caused due to the sacred bath. The deities after recovering fully give darshan to the devotees popularly called ‘Nava Youvan Darshan’ which is usually observed a day before the Rath Yatra.

However, this year the Nava Youvan Darshan, Netrotsav (an important ritual carried out by the priests) and Rath Yatra are falling on the same day after a gap of 53 years throwing a big challenge before the priests and the administration to complete all the rituals to ensure the pulling of chariots start by 5 p.m. on July 7.

The state government has also declared the day after Rath Yatra a holiday as the pulling of chariots will continue the next day too.

“It is a unique and rare Rath Yatra which will be celebrated for two days (July 7-8). So, a decision has been taken to declare the day after Rath Yatra as a holiday,” Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi announced on Tuesday.

CM Majhi during the review meeting on Rath Yatra in Puri on Tuesday sought the cooperation of all the stakeholders including servitors, district administration and the local public for smooth and hassle-free conduct of the Rath Yatra festival.

“Such a situation last occurred in 1971 around 53 years ago when Nava Youvan Darshan, Netrotsav and Rath Yatra fell on the same day. The last time the Pahandi Bije, the ceremonial procession of holy siblings along with other deities from the 12th century shrine to their respective chariots, started at 2 p.m. while the pulling of chariots started at 7 p.m. in the evening just for the sake of ritual,” senior Daitapati servitor Binayak Das Mohapatra told IANS.

“However, this time we will try hard to complete all the rituals inside the temple an hour before 1 p.m., the time fixed for the Pahandi rituals on July 7. It is also expected that more devotees will gather on Rath Yatra as they will fail to have a glimpse of the lords on Nava Youvan Darshan,” he added.

–IANS

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Jaipur, July 6 (IANS) BJP leader Kirodi Lal Meena, who resigned as Rajasthan minister on Thursday, has reiterated that he took the decision in line with his poll-time undertaking to quit if he fails to ensure his party’s victory in any of the seven Lok Sabha seats in eastern Rajasthan that were assigned to him.

The 72-year-old leader also reiterated that he holds no grudge against anyone from the organisation or the Chief Minister.

Meena made the remarks after meeting BJP National President J.P. Nadda in the national capital on Friday.

He said he will meet the BJP chief again after 10 days as the latter has called him.

Meena said that he told party president Nadda that he resigned on moral grounds. “The people of the region in which I have been serving for 40-45 years turned away from me, I can’t tolerate this, so I decided to resign from my position on moral grounds…,” he said.

Meena further said that he had given a copy of his resignation to the party chief. “We had a long discussion. He has called me to Delhi again after 10 days,” he added.

Meena, a key tribal leader in the state, refuted claims that he was lobbying for the party ticket for his brother from Dausa. “This is wrong, there is no such thing. Wherever I will be sent, I will work there. There are three by-elections in ST majority areas, I will work there; we will put in all our strength to make the candidates win,” he said.

–IANS

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Lucknow, July 6 (IANS) The Uttar Pradesh Police on Friday arrested Dev Prakash Madhukar, the key accused in the tragic stampede at a ‘satsang’ (religious congregation) in Hathras that claimed the lives of as many as 121 people, mostly women.

Madhukar, the ‘Mukhya Sevadar’, was named as the main accused in the FIR filed by the police. Earlier, a reward of Rs 1 lakh for information regarding his whereabouts was also announced.

The arrest comes a day after the police nabbed six people in connection with the stampede. They were all members of the satsang organising committee.

The stampede took place on July 2 during the satsang by self-styled godman and preacher Narayan Sakar Hari alias ‘Bhole Baba’.

According to the FIR, over 2.50 lakh people attended the congregation while the administration had permitted only 80,000 people.

Satsang organisers, according to the FIR, tried to hide the actual number of people at the event by concealing evidence and throwing slippers and other belongings of the followers of the godman in nearby fields.

The stampede occurred when several devotees scrambled to collect the soil from the preacher’s feet, which they believed could heal all their ailments. Eyewitnesses recalled how people fell one after one, with their bodies lying atop each other.

Meanwhile, the police are actively gathering information on Narayan Sakar Hari’s background, and teams have been dispatched to cities where he has potential criminal records. However, his name has not been mentioned in the FIR.

–IANS

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Chandigarh, July 5 (IANS) The Punjabi Cultural Council (PCC) and the World Gatka Federation (WGF) on Friday greeted 10 Sikh MPs, including second-time MPs Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi and Preet Kaur Gill, for their victory in the British general elections

The Labour Party’s landslide victory has secured significant representation for community members in the UK House of Commons.

In a statement, Punjabi Cultural Council Chairman Harjeet Singh Grewal expressed pride in the historic achievement of the Sikh community in the elections. He said a record 10 Sikh members, comprising five women, have been elected to the Parliament, all from the Labour Party.

Notably, Dhesi from the Slough constituency and Preet Kaur Gill from Birmingham Edgbaston have been re-elected for the second consecutive time, continuing their advocacy for the Sikhs and broader community issues within the UK Parliament.

Additionally, eight newly-elected Sikh MPs are entering Parliament for the first time, marking a significant milestone for their community.

World Gatka Federation General Secretary Baljit Singh also thanked the British voters and supporters for placing their trust in Sikh leaders who champion change, unity, and progress in Britain.

–IANS

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