MiG-29K T-shirts, faith in Army, and a call from Bhole Baba: An unprecedented Amarnath Yatra picks up

Indian Express

5 hours ago

The whirring of the helicopter blades breaks the silence in the lush green mountains of Pahalgam. Every few minutes, an armoured vehicle rumbles past, with the personnel inside scanning the crowd.
It is palpable that this year's Amarnath Yatra is taking place under the shadow of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, wherein 26 civilians were killed on the picturesque meadows in southern Kashmir.
It used to be a celebration where devotees would jibe to EDM remixes of the latest devotional songs. This time, at the Nunwan base camp, the first campsite for the yatris, there is silence – no melodies that sadhus play, no shouts of Bum Bum Bhole. Instead, what's audible is the sound of metal detectors and a loudspeaker that regularly warns pilgrims not to go near the Lidder River, where chances of drowning are high.
The yatris navigate through several security measures, including RFID tags that enable facial recognition, a physical pat-down, and bag examination through X-ray machines. The camp is equipped with 550 tents, 17 shops, 300 toilets, and 70 baths, all arranged in a grid, and can accommodate up to 5,500 pilgrims.
However, the tents have barely filled up at noon on Friday. Mohammad Shami's three tents remain empty: 'Yesterday, I managed to fill them. I charge Rs 600 for a tent equipped with a bed, an electricity connection, and a blanket.'
Durgesh Kumar, a resident of Uttar Pradesh's Ayodhya, stands alone, his right sleeve pinned to his shirt where his arm should be. Ten years ago, a flour mill accident claimed his limb, but not his determination. 'My group of 30 people have left,' he said. Kumar headed here from Jammu when he was unable to get an RFID tag there.
'There is massive enthusiasm in Jammu. I was not getting a token. But Bhole blessed me with one today. I hope to catch up with my group soon. My wife and two children cried when I decided to come to Pahalgam. But I am undeterred,' he said.
Then there's Gautam Mahato, who journeyed from Kharagpur. His white T-shirt, printed in Thailand by his employer, bears his photograph alongside his boss's son, a gift for his work as a contractor. 'My ticket was cancelled six times in the past,' Mahato said, beaming. 'I try every year, but Baba doesn't call me. This year, I got the chance to come.'
'My wife cried a lot. She said, 'Why do you go there when Bhole Baba has stopped you six times?' I told her this time, God has called me, so I will go,' he said.
For some pilgrims, the terror attack has become a catalyst for participation rather than deterrence. Anil Kumar from the Ram Mandir Sansthan group in Ayodhya leads 11 first-time pilgrims. 'Humare andar aur ichcha jaagi,' he said. 'We wanted to come to Amarnath because of the terror attack,' said Arjun Jaiswal, another member of the group.
The sentiment is echoed by a group of 43 people from Gorakhpur, many wearing MiG 29K T-shirts in support of Operation Sindoor. They have been making this pilgrimage for several years.
Sarvajit Gupta (23), from the Gorakhpur group, articulated what many feel: 'I told my family that if the Indian Army is there, then there is nothing to fear. When our family asked us not to go, it lit a fire in our hearts. We decided to rope in as many people as possible. We have come here to show that we won't bow to fear.'
At ground zero in Pahalgam, personnel from the Central Industrial Security Force, Central Reserve Police Force, and Indo-Tibetan Border Police now work alongside local police in intensive frisking operations that can stretch for hours. A BSF constable in dark aviators and a tactical face mask politely declines a family's request for a selfie. 'Maaf karna, authority nahi hai,' he said. This is his third posting for the Amarnath Yatra, and he has watched the security apparatus evolve into something unprecedented. 'There is no scope for any mistake,' the constable said, his eyes scanning the crowd even as he spoke.
At the Pahalgam main market, the berry shops, Kashmir handloom stores and tea shops barely have any customers.
Three women from Bhopal wait for their husbands to join them here. Lata Kushwaha left her 3-year-old daughter and 8-year-old son with their grandparents back home. Her relative Lakshmi Kushwaha has the same worry; her 13-year-old son and 10-year-old daughter are hundreds of miles away. 'We always go somewhere,' said Priya Kushwaha, the third woman. 'This time, we thought we would go to Amarnath. We went to Kedarnath last year, and we got everything in a single day.'
They left in a group of 18, but not all have got their RFID tags. Three days were spent running from pillar to post in Jammu, chasing the elusive registration passes that would grant them access to the holy cave. 'We don't care about the terror attack,' Priya said. 'We just want to do darshan no matter what.'
Jahid Azad, the assistant director of the Tourism department at Pahalgam, told The Indian Express, 'We expected the crowd to be pretty low due to the unfortunate terror attack. This time, we were caught by surprise as many yatris came for darshan from the Pahalgam route. But overall, the tourism footfall in Pahalgam has taken a hit. We are preparing a report to enumerate the economic impact of this.'
Azad said they were expecting 1,000 yatris per day, but the numbers have gone up to 3,000-4,000. 'From the Pahalgam route, 12,000 pilgrims have left since the yatra began. We have to see how long this keeps up,' he said.