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ARTICLE : Amarnaath Tragedy Commentary
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To: ghen@netcom.com
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Subject: ARTICLE : Amarnaath Tragedy Commentary
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From: jai@mantra.com (Dr. Jai Maharaj)
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Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 09:22:19 -1000
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Organization: Mantra Corporation, USA
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Reply-To: "Dr. Jai Maharaj" <jai@eskimo.com>
AMARNATH TRAGEDY
Commentary by J. C. Pandey
A.I.R., August 29, 1996
Though the annual pilgrimage to the holy cave of
Amarnath in Kashmir has concluded with the Holy mace
reaching the cave yesterday, the tragedy that struck the
Yatra this year has left behind a trail of agony which
will keep ringing in our ears for a long time. About 200
yatries lost their lives and thousands had to abandon
the Yatra in the wake of heavy rains and snowstorm. It
was a nightmare for the anxious relatives, spread al
over the country trying frantically to know something
about their near and dear ones. It is unfortunate that
this has happened after the militants has lifted the ban
on the Yatra this year.
The State government claims that but for the weather
turning hostile sufficient arrangements had been made
for the pilgrims. Over one lakh yatries did complete
darshan in the first five days alone this time compared
to a total of 70,000 last year. The strength of the
camping site and stocks had been increased
substantially. The unprecedented rush of 1.5 lakh
yatris coupled with the weather running worse, suddenly,
however, put everything out of gear. The closure of
roads leading out of Pahalgam aggravated the problem as
75,000 yatris remained bottled up there.
The relief and rescue operations were hampered due to
bad weather. Despite this, the Indian Air Force operated
60 sorties to evacuate the stranded old and ailing
pilgrims. Food packets, medicines and blankets were air
dropped. The State administration provided free ration
to Lungers set up at Pahalgam. The local people in
keeping with their age old tradition played a remarkable
role by providing food and shelter to the harassed
pilgrims.
Understandably no administrative set up can match the
massive requirement in such a situation. The criticism
voiced by the pilgrims is therefore quite natural.
Considering the arduous terrain of the 46 kilometres
track from Pahalgam to the cave, the tragedy could have
been worse since no one could have reached them in bad
weather. The pilgrims had to move on by their own
strength and will power, and that is what they
ultimately did.
The lessons from the incident are quite obvious. The
terrain and the conditions demand that the trek is
undertaken only by the physically fit. Unfortunately,
13 persons died of heart failure even before the
calamity had struck. Among the casualties were the old
and the ill clad. The Yatra needs to be regulated to
allow for passage of a limited number of pilgrims at a
time. Permanent shelters are required to be built and
not the least, meteorological reports need to be
obtained and strictly adhered to during the yatra. The
Central Government has now agreed to hold an enquiry
into the incident. One hopes, that the impartial inquiry
will bring out the lacunae that need to be addressed in
time.
End of commentary by J. C. Pandey from A.I.R., Delhi
Jai Maharaj <jai@mantra.com> Jyotishi, Vedic Astrologer
%:%:%:%:%:%:%:%:%:%:%:%:%:%:%:%:%:% *-=Om Shanti=-* %:%:%
