Amarnath pilgrims line up, with MiG-29K T-shirts, faith in Army

THE WHIRRING of the helicopter blades breaks the silence in the lush green mountains of Pahalgam. Every few minutes, an armoured vehicle rumbles past, with the armed personnel inside scanning the crowd.

- ANAND MOHAN J

It is palpable that this year's Amarnath Yatra is taking place under the shadow of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, wherein 26 civilians were killed on the picturesque meadows in southern Kashmir.

It used to be a celebration where devotees would jive to EDM remixes of the latest devotional songs. This time, at the Nunwan base camp, the first campsite for the yatris, there is silence — no melodies that sadhus play, no shouts of Bum Bum Bhole. Instead, what's audible is the sound of metal detectors and a loudspeaker that regularly warns pilgrims not to go near the Lidder River, where chances of drowning are high.

The yatris navigate through several security measures, including RFID tags that enable facial recognition, a physical pat-down, and bag examination through X-ray machines. The camp is equipped with 550 tents, 17 shops, 300 toilets, and 70 baths, all arranged in a grid, and can accommodate up to 5,500 pilgrims.