Baltal, June 28
Thousands of pilgrims left the Baltal base camp since early morning to trek the 14-km-long journey to the holy cave shrine of Amarnath in the upper reaches of Sonmarg on the first day of the annual yatra today.

The track to the cave shrine via traditional route of Pahalgam, however, remained closed due to accumulation of snow in the upper reaches.

A decision on the commencement of yatra through the traditional route is expected to be taken by the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB), headed by Governor NN Vohra, on Monday.

“The yatra is going on in an organised manner and all arrangements are in place for the smooth movement of the pilgrims,” Deputy Commissioner, Ganderbal, Sarmad Hafeez, who is also the Yatra Officer, told The Tribune.

The movement of pilgrims from the Baltal base camp started at 4.30 am and only registered yatris were allowed to proceed to the shrine to avoid any rush on the track, Hafeez said.

The DC, meanwhile, said emphasis was being paid on providing all the necessary medical aid to the pilgrims en route the cave.

“Among other facilities, special attention is being paid on the health services being provided to the pilgrims along the track,” the official said.

He said health centres had been established at a distance of every two kilometers to ensure safe pilgrimage.

About 7,900 pilgrims left for the holy cave via the Baltal- Domail route on the first day of the yatra.

After reviewing the ground situation and other relevant factors, the Chief Executive Officer of the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board on Saturday informed the district and tourism authorities at Jammu and Srinagar to allow on-spot registration for pilgrims undertaking the yatra via the Baltal route from today.

Following the decision, on-spot registration counters will start functioning at Vaishnavi Dham, Saraswati Dham, Jammu Haat and Ram Mandir in Jammu and Tourist Reception Centre, Nowgam, in Srinagar.

On-spot registration for pilgrims undertaking yatra via the Pahalgam route will remain suspended till June 30, when a high-level meeting will be held regarding the opening of the traditional route, an official spokesman said.

Srinagar, June 28
Governor NN Vohra today offered prayers at the Amarnath cave shrine in south Kashmir and participated in the pooja.

The Governor prayed for sustained peace, harmony, progress and prosperity in Jammu and Kashmir.

First Lady Usha Vohra, Chief Executive Officer of the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board Rakesh K Gupta and Lt Gen Subrata Saha, GOC 15 Corps along with other senior officers of the Board also paid obeisance at the shrine.

After his visit to the shrine early this morning, the Governor also reviewed the arrangements made for the pilgrims at the base camp and conveyed Board’s thanks to the state government, the Army, the Central Para Military Forces, the police and all other agencies concerned for their support and cooperation.

He stressed the need for effective supervision and round-the-clock monitoring by the camp directors and all the functionaries involved in the management of the yatra for ensuring smooth conduct of the pilgrimage.

From the cave shrine the Governor flew to Neelgrath Helipad, near Baltal base camp, where he flagged-off the Neelgrath-Panjtarni helicopter service.

From Neelgrath, Vohra proceeded to Pahalgam where he inaugurated the Pahalgam-Panjtarni helicopter service. Minister for Tourism GA Mir and Pahalgam legislator Rafi Ahmad Mir were also present on the occasion.

After inaugurating the helicopter services at Neelgrath and Pahalgam, the Governor visited the Baltal base camp and the access control gate at Domail where he reviewed the manner in which pilgrims were being checked and cleared.

Meanwhile, Rakesh K Gupta has once again appealed to the intending yatris to embark on the pilgrimage only after getting medically checked and obtaining a valid yatra permit.

The CEO said the Board has also issued a detailed advisory for the yatris visiting the shrine.

The Yatris need to strictly adhere to these do’s and don’ts as they have to undertake an arduous trek through high mountain ranges under adverse weather conditions, Gupta said.

Jammu, June 28
The second batch of 742 pilgrims left the Bhagwati Nagar base camp in Jammu early this morning for Baltal.

The batch comprised 626 males, 102 females and 14 children.

In all 34 vehicles including 17 buses, 14 light motor vehicles and three motorcycles proceeded towards the Baltal base camp in the Valley from Jammu.

On way to Srinagar the batch was accorded a rousing reception at Udhampur by the people and the district administration.

Srinagar, June 28
Contesting the final closure report by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the January 1993 Sopore massacre, survivors of the incident today filed a protest petition before a TADA court here seeking “further investigation” into the 21-year-old incident.

The TADA court, one of the two designated CBI courts in Kashmir, while feeling “not satisfied” with the final report, has summoned the investigating officer to appear on the next hearing fixed for July 14.

On January 6, 1993, personnel of 94th Battalion, Border Security Force (BSF), in a retaliatory action allegedly killed more than 50 civilians, besides injuring nearly 20 more. In the incident more than 500 shops and nearly 25 houses were also destroyed in the fire.

The incident was preceded by an alleged militant attack on a BSF patrol in the town on the same day, in which a jawan was killed.

“The CBI in its final report to the TADA court, Srinagar, filed on December 4, 2013, had sought closure of the case on the ground that no case has been made out against the accused BSF personnel,” said counsel Parvez Imroz, who today filed a protest petition against the closure report on behalf of the relatives of three victims killed in the massacre.

The first informant, advocate Syed Ilyas, on whose application an FIR was registered by the police against the BSF in 1993, has already died. The CBI has sought closure of the case on the ground that the witnesses examined were unable to identify the BSF personnel allegedly involved in the incident and they (witnesses) could not give details of the firing or cross-firing.

In the final closure report, the CBI has further pointed out that a period of more than 20 years has already elapsed and “the accused BSF personnel have already been tried for the alleged offences under Sections 302, 307 and 436 of the RPC by the competent court established by law and convicted accordingly”.

However, these grounds taken by the CBI in its closure report have been contested by the survivors of the incident. “It appears only 11 civilian witnesses’ statements have been taken by the investigating officer. In reality, there are numerous witnesses whose evidence must be recorded by the CBI,” advocate Imroz said while sharing contents of the protest petition.

Terming the court martial proceedings as an attempt to cover the crime, the survivors in the petition have sought further investigation into the case. It has also been submitted that the CBI record already has names of 10 BSF officers/personnel who could be indicted in this case.

Counsel Imroz said the TADA court had now asked the CBI, particularly the investigating officer, to appear before it on the next date fixed on July 14.

Baramulla, June 28
Life limped back to normalcy in Sopore town of Baramulla district today after remaining under restrictions following the killing of a local youth on Monday. The authorities lifted restrictions from the town last evening. As per reports, business establishments, petrol pumps and educational institutions opened today morning. Traffic was seen plying on all routes.

On June 23, protests rocked Sopore town after a local youth, Arshid Ahmad Shah, a resident of Seer village, was killed and four others were injured when security forces allegedly fired upon people protesting the killing of a Lashkar-e-Toiba militant in the Krankshivan locality of Sopore. — OC

Srinagar, June 28
Six legislators are among the 21 candidates whose names were today announced by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to contest the Assembly elections scheduled later this year.

The party had on June 17 announced the first list of candidates for the 28 Assembly segments of the state.

After its victory in the recent Lok Sabha polls, the party has embarked on a mission to get 44 of the total 87 Assembly seats to form the government on its own in the state.

The legislators to retain the party ticket include Deputy Speaker of the Assembly Mohammad Sartaj Madni from Devsar, Molvi Iftikhar Hussain Ansari from Pattan, Abdul Rehman Veeri from Bijbehara, Abdul Gaffar Sofi from Homshalibugh, Nizamuddin Bhat from Bandipora and Shafi Ahmed Wani from Beerwah.

The other prominent leaders who have retained the party candidature include former ministers, Mohammad Dilwar Mir from Rafiabad and Qazi Mohammad Afzal from Ganderbal.

Asiya Naqash has been selected from the Hazratbal Assembly segment.

In the second list, the party has given tickets to eight new faces.

Businessman-turned-politician Syed Mohammad Altaf Bukhari has been given the party ticket from high-profile Amirakadal constituency of Srinagar district. Trade union leader Khursheed Alam has been given the party ticket from the city’s Khanyar area.

Former IPS officer Raja Aijaz Ali, who joined the PDP earlier this week, is the party candidate from the border Assembly segment of Uri. Sardar Amreek Singh and Faqir Chand Bagat have been given the party ticket from Gandhi Nagar and Bishna in the Jammu region, respectively.

The party has not yet taken any decision on candidates who will contest on the two Assembly segments of Wachi and Baramulla, vacated by Mehbooba Mufti and Muzaffar Beigh, elected to the Lok Sabha recently.

The party has also not taken any decision on Batamaloo where MP Tariq Hameed Karra had unsuccessfully contested the last Assembly elections.

Sources said there were differences over selection of candidates from the three segments and some other seats.

Srinagar, June 28
The Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP) has alleged destruction of a “few” unmarked graves in north Kashmir and appealed to the religious groups and the local Auqaf committees of various areas to ‘safeguard and protect’ the grave sites.

The APDP, which is seeking whereabouts of over 8,000 cases of enforced or involuntary disappearance since 1989, in its public statement, today also “reminded” the government of its responsibility to carry out “comprehensive forensic investigations” of the unknown and unmarked graves, which are also subject of inquiry by the State Human Rights Commission.

“Recently, the APDP received reports about the desecration of few unmarked grave sites at Uri in Baramulla district of north Kashmir. At one of the grave sites in main Uri, where 16 unidentified bodies were buried, dogs have dug out some graves from which the remains of the buried have been taken away,” APDP spokesperson said in a statement here.

“Further, at another location in the Boniyar area, where there were three unmarked graves with eight bodies buried in them, the Forest Department has built a road leading to its nursery and has destroyed the grave site,” it said, adding that the Boniyar grave site was part of the SHRC inquiry.

Srinagar, June, 28
Union Civil Aviation Minister Pusapati Ashok Gajapathi Raju met Governor NN Vohra at Raj Bhawan here today.

The Governor urged Pusapathi to consider issues relating to uncapped airfares, need for enlargement and modernisation of airports and extension of civil aviation facilities to cover various remote parts of Jammu and Kashmir. — TNS

Batote, June 28
Two youths died instantly when their motorcyle collided with a rear wheel of a tipper truck coming from the opposite direction at Saror on the Ramban-Gool road today afternoon.

The deceased, both aged 22, were identified as Jahangir Alam of Khari in Banihal and Fayaz Ahmed of Saror in Ramban. They were going to Saror from Ramban when the accident took place.

Police sources said the tipper driver fled from the spot. They said the police after registering a case have started a manhunt. — OC