259 Pilgrims leave for Amarnath

Jammu, Aug 11: A fresh batch of 259 pilgrims, the lowest since the Amarnath Yatra commenced last month, left for Pahalgam and Baltal base camps from where they would move towards the holy cave shrine of Amarnath in South Kashmir, official sources said.

The batch, comprising 106 men, 14 women and 139 sadhus, left in a fleet of eight vehicles, including seven buses and one light motor vehicle, amid tight security from here around 0505 hrs this morning, they said.

With today's convoy, the 41st this year, a total of 54,182 pilgrims have left for the holy shrine from the Jammu base camp since July 2, sources added.

UNI