Overview

• Heavy rains closed the Pahalgam route on July 31 and led to the suspension of both Pahalgam and Baltal axes on August 3 for urgent storm damage repairs.
• Over 414,311 devotees reached the 3,880-meter Amarnath cave shrine during this year’s yatra under the security framework of Operation Shiva.
• Engineering teams and Central Armed Police Forces units have been deployed to assess washed-out paths and restore bridges, shelters and communication lines.
• Concerns over climate change grew as the ice Lingam began shrinking days into the pilgrimage and a 2023 study warned of significant glacier retreat in the Kashmir Himalayas.
• Despite the journey’s early halt, the Chhari Mubarak procession is scheduled to perform its traditional rituals at the cave shrine on August 9.