SRINAGAR: More than 12,000 pilgrims had darshan of the naturally formed ice 'Shivling' at the Amarnath cave shrine on the opening day of the 57-day annual pilgrimage on Friday, officials said.
The Amarnath Yatra began early morning, simultaneously via the traditional 48-km Nunwan-Pahalgam route in the Anantnag district and the shorter but steeper 14-km Baltal route in the Ganderbal district.
Around 12,100 pilgrims paid obeisance at the 3,800-metre-high cave shrine in the south Kashmir Himalayas. The pilgrims included about 9,350 men, 2,250 women, over 200 children, 70 sadhus, nine transgender devotees, and more than 260 security personnel, officials said.
The batches of pilgrims, including men, women and seers, left from the Nunwan base camp in Pahalgam, in south Kashmir's Anantnag, and Baltal base camp in Sonamarg area of central Kashmir's Ganderbal, at the first light of the day, they said.
The yatra will conclude on August 28.