Mahant Deependra Giri, the custodian of the Charri-Mubarak (Holy Mace) of Lord Shiva, today performed a pooja at the Shankaracharya temple as part of the rituals of the Amarnath yatra even as the helicopter services for the pilgrims were started for the first time from the traditional Pahalgam route.
Chanting praises of Lord Shiva like Bum Bum Bole, Mahant Giri led a select group of Sadhus and devotees from the Dashnami Akhara, the resting place of the Holy Mace made of silver, at Budshah chowk here to perform the pooja on the occasion of Haryali-Amavasya.
The journey of the Charri Mubarak from the Dashnami Akhara began soon after the longest solar eclipse of the century ended at around 7.35 a.m.
The sound of conch and hymns rented the air around the Shankaracharya hills as the pooja was in progress for more than an hour.
Mahant Deependra Giri later led the Charri Mubarak back to its abode at Dashnami Akahra in the form of a procession.
As per the schedule issued by the Trust, the Charri Mubarak will be taken to Sharika-Bhawani Temple at Hari Parbat tomorrow to pay obeisance on the occasion of "Dvitiya".
Another important landmark in the Amarnath yatra was reached today as chopper services from Pahalgam base camp to Panchtarni were launched for the pilgrims.
State Minister for Tourism and Culture Nawang Rigzin Jora and Chief Executive Officer of SASB, B B Vyas were among several pilgrims to board the first flight.
Helicopter services were started in 2005 from Baltal base camp to holy cave. However, due to concerns raised by environmentalists, the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB) last week decided not to operate any flights to the cave shrine but only up to Panchtarni, which is just over a kilometer away.
As the service from Baltal has been a huge success for the SASB, the board decided to extend it from the traditional route as well following demands by the local businessmen and some pilgrims as well.
Vyas said the decision to launch the heli-services from Pahalgam has been taken by the SASB in order to maintain the spiritual ambience of the holy cave and to address the repeated complaints that the helicopter movements, close to the cave, impacted on the longevity of the holy Ice Lingam.
He said the relocation of the helipad away from the sanctum sanctorum will substantially reduce any possible impact on the fragile ecology of the holy cave area as a result of exhaust fumes and vibrations arising from the helicopter operations.
The new location has been finalized to ensure the complete safety of the camp at the holy cave and of the pilgrims walking on the tracks to the revered shrine, keeping in mind that a recent helicopter accident near the Lower Camp had resulted in the death of a lady pilgrim who was on her way to the shrine, he added.
The CEO said it has also been decided to include a heli-Parikrama of the holy Sheshnag for the air-borne devotees, as an important element of the new helicopter service on the traditional route.
Pawan Hans Pvt Ltd, the company operating the helicopter service on the traditional route, have announced an inaugural reduction in fare from Rs 12,000 per person (round trip) to Rs 10,000 per pilgrim for first five days after the commencement of the new service, Mr Vyas said.
He stated that the Board has also directed the helicopter operators on both the routes to ensure that the senior citizens, the old and infirm, and physically handicapped persons are given preference and are allowed to travel in the first few sorties every morning so that they can, other things being equal, return to Baltal and Pahalgam by the same evening.
Meanwhile, more than 3,500 pilgrims performed the darshan of the naturally-formed Ice-Lingam in the 3880-metre cave shrine in South Kashmir Himalayas, official sources said.
They said the number of pilgrims had come down over the last couple of days for some unexplained reasons.
A spokesman of the SASB said 4,637 yatris performed darshan of the holy cave of Shri Amarnathji on Tuesday.
He said 2138 pilgrims left from the Baltal base camp and 1347 from the Nunwan base camp this morning on their journey to the holy cave shrine.
Another batch of 727 yatris left from Jammu to Pahalgam and Baltal base camps today, he added.
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