In view of the prevailing Covid-19 circumstances, Jammu and Kashmir Government today canceled this year’s annual pilgrimage of Shri Amarnath Ji Yatra. However, all the traditional religious rituals shall be performed at the Holy Cave Shrine as per past practice.
A threadbare discussion in this regard was held with the members of the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board in view of the present Covid-19 situation before arriving at the decision. subsequently, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, who is also Chairman of Shri Amarnath Shrine Board held detailed deliberations with Chief Secretary, DGP, Principal Secretary, and Principal Secretary to Lt Governor and directed that devotees should be enabled to attend to morning and evening Aarti in online mode.
The meeting was informed that Shrine Board has put in place a virtual and televised mechanism for live Darshan of Aarti from the holy cave.
Lieutenant Governor said that it is important to save the lives of the people in view of the pandemic and subsequently not advisable to hold and conduct this year’s pilgrimage in the larger public interest.
Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board CEO said the shrine board has made the arrangements for the mace of Lord Shiva- Chhari Mubarak’ to be taken to the holy cave on 22nd August when the yatra is to conclude coinciding with the festival of Raksha Bandhan.
He said that both morning telecast of Aarti at 6 AM and evening Aarti at 5 PM, each for 30 minutes would be live-streamed on Shri Amarnath ji Shrine board’s official website and the app specifically dedicated for the devotees.
By Vishal Sharma
Vishal is a technology enthusiast with journalistic leanings. He was one of the first bloggers in India, coming online in 1994, even before the internet was available on a widespread basis in India. Vishal is a cybersecurity consultant working as an independent contractor for Google. A journalist with a career spanning over 20 years, he has worked for several national English dailies including The Pioneer, Indian Express, Business Standard, and more. He has also worked for Indo-American Times, and India Monthly magazine, based in the United States of America. Besides being on the editorial board of Vijayupadhyay.com, he also publishes Indian Talent Magazine, an internationally acclaimed talent promotion publication. He has extensive experience in corporate branding, online publishing, and advertising. He started Vikirna Mediatek in 2018 with a vision to bring affordable technology solutions to the common masses of an India which is fast becoming Digital, walking on the path that was heralded by the late Prime Minister of India Rajiv Gandhi and forwarded by the current Prime Minister Narendra Modi.