Banihal, Jul 16: The 15th batch of pilgrims undertaking the annual Shri Amarnath Ji Yatra-2026 left the Bhagwati Nagar Yatri Niwas in Jammu during the early hours of Thursday under multi-layer security arrangements, officials said.
According to the Joint Police Control Room (JPCR), a total of 5,201 pilgrims departed for the twin base camps in Kashmir in a convoy of 191 vehicles. Of them, 1,745 pilgrims left for the Baltal base camp in 74 vehicles, while 3,456 pilgrims proceeded towards the Pahalgam route in 117 vehicles.
The batch included 3,970 male pilgrims, 1,124 women, five children, 92 sadhus, nine sadhvis and one transgender pilgrim.
The Baltal convoy departed at 2:42 a.m., while the Pahalgam convoy left at 3:17 a.m. under the escort of security forces and traffic police.
Officials said elaborate security, traffic management and medical arrangements have been put in place to ensure the safe movement of the pilgrims along the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway.
With the departure of the 15th batch, the cumulative number of pilgrims who have left Bhagwati Nagar Yatri Niwas for the holy cave shrine has reached 1,04,488, according to the JPCR.
