200 pilgrims from State stranded in J&K.
More than 200 Amarnath pilgrims from Prakasam, Nellore and Guntur districts are stranded near the Baltal base camp for two days due to the ongoing violence in Kashmir valley.
Ongole: More than 200 Amarnath pilgrims from Prakasam, Nellore and Guntur districts are stranded near the Baltal base camp for two days due to the ongoing violence in Kashmir valley.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu who is in Russia tour ordered the officials to make alternative arrangements to bring the natives to the State without any harm to them.
About 150 pilgrims from Chimakurti, Singarayakonda, Kandukur, Chirala and Ongole in Prakasam district, 50 pilgrims from Rajupalem, Buchireddy Palem and Nellore in Nellore district and 30 pilgrims from Guntur district left for the Amarnath Yatra during last week of June as batches in various trains and reached New Delhi.
The local tour operators arranged transportation for the Amarnath Yatra and provided local guides. They visited the Amarnath Shrine on July 7 and 8 and were on their way back to New Delhi when military forces in Jammu and Kashmir killed Burhan Wani, a member of terrorist group Hizbul Mujhaideen (on July 8) at Anantnag.
As Wani was a local man with huge fan-following and famous for his speeches, his death triggered tension in Jammu and Kashmir and the military forces shut down the Amarnath Yatra, including enforcement of curfew in the State. The local government also ordered for temporary shutdown of mobile and internet services to restrict spreading of tension through messages and phone calls.
More than 200 pilgrims from Andhra Pradesh were stranded in Baltal base camp since Friday. As there are restrictions on movement and mobile signals, the pilgrims are unable to communicate and describe their safety to their loved ones in Andhra Pradesh.
They have been suffering for two days without enough food and drinking water. They, however, managed to inform their plight to their family members and local officials on Sunday.
Ongole MP YV Subba Reddy spoke to the pilgrims and informed their position to the Additional Secretary in Ministry of Home Affairs, Gopal Reddy. He asked the Secretary to make arrangements to bring the pilgrims home safe.
Deputy Chief Minister Nimmakayala Chinarajappa and Transport Minister Sidda Raghava Rao and Ongole MLA Damacharla Janardhan also spoke to the pilgrims and assured them of immediate help.
Receiving update from the State, the Chief Minister, Chandrababu Naidu, ordered the officials to take immediate measures to bring the people to the State without any harm to them.
The State government ordered the Andhra Pradesh Bhavan resident officer Srikanth to make alternative arrangements to bring the pilgrims to New Delhi immediately and send them to the State by Monday.
Most of the pilgrims have reserved berths in the Swarna Jayanthi Express scheduled to start in Nizamuddin on Monday morning and are expected to reach home on Tuesday
