Thousands rescued at flood-hit Hindu pilgrimage in Kashmir

SRINAGAR, India –

Emergency workers have rescued thousands of pilgrims after flash floods triggered by flash rains swept away their makeshift camps during an annual Hindu pilgrimage to an icy Himalayan cave in Indian-controlled Kashmir, officials said Saturday. At least 16 people have died and dozens were injured.

Authorities suspended the pilgrimage for two days as rains continued to batter the region. Rescue teams from the Indian army, paramilitaries and police, as well as disaster management officials, combed slippery mountain tracks and used thermal imaging devices, sniffer dogs and through-the-wall radar to locate dozens of of missing persons.

They dug through mud, sand and rocks that flooded the camps Friday night after pouring down near the cave shrine revered by Hindus. Civilian and military helicopters evacuated the wounded to hospitals.

Thousands of people were in the mountains when the rains came.

Officials said some 15,000 worshipers were moved to safer locations and at least five dozen injured received first aid at base camp hospitals set up for the pilgrimage, which is being carried out by hundreds of thousands of Hindus from across India.

Pilgrim groups are staggered over a month and a half for logistical and security reasons.

Ravi Dutt, the 69-year-old Hindu ascetic from the eastern state of West Bengal, was camping near the cave on Friday night. He said that suddenly the water gushed from a mountain “washing away men, women and our belongings as well.”

“Everything got buried under a mountain (of mud and rocks),” Dutt said as he collapsed. “I have never seen such an incident in my life.”

Abdul Ghani, a Kashmiri porter who rents out his pony to pilgrims, said it was total chaos. “I just rode a devotee on my pony and never looked back,” he said.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his anguish over the deaths. Manoj Sinha, New Delhi’s top administrator in the region, said: “Our priority is to save people’s lives. Instructions have been issued to provide all necessary assistance to pilgrims.”

The Amarnath pilgrimage began on June 30 and tens of thousands of devotees have already visited the cave shrine where Hindus worship Lingam, a naturally formed ice stalagmite, as an incarnation of Shiva, the god of destruction and death. regeneration.

This year, officials expect nearly 1 million visitors after a two-year hiatus due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Worshipers walk to the cave along two routes through lush green meadows and rocky, forested mountain passes with views of glacial lakes and snow-capped peaks. A traditional route through the southern hilltop resort of Pahalgam takes three days, while a journey through northeastern Baltal takes one day. Some pilgrims use helicopter services for quick visits.

The cave, at 13,500 feet (4,115 meters) above sea level, is covered in snow most of the year except during the brief summer period when it is open to pilgrims.

Hundreds of pilgrims have died in the past due to exhaustion and exposure to inclement weather during the journey through the icy mountains. In 1996, thousands were trapped in a freak snowstorm, resulting in more than 250 deaths.

The pilgrimage concludes on August 11, a full moon night that, according to Hindus, commemorates Shiva revealing the secret of the creation of the universe.

In addition to weather-related dangers, officials have said pilgrims face a heightened threat of attacks from Muslim rebels who have fought the Indian government for decades. This year, for the first time, devotees are tagged with a wireless tracking system. Tens of thousands of police and soldiers also guard the routes.

The pilgrimage has been targeted in the past by suspected rebels, who accuse Hindu-majority India of using it as a political statement to bolster its claim to the disputed Muslim-majority region.

At least 50 pilgrims have been killed in three dozen attacks attributed to militants since an armed rebellion began in Indian Kashmir in 1989 over the region’s independence or merger with Pakistan, which controls part of the territory.

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