Minor landslide hits new track to Vaishno Devi shrine, 18,000 pilgrims offer prayers

The new track to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine atop the Trikuta hills in Jammu and Kashmir's Reasi district was briefly closed on Wednesday following a minor landslide, while helicopter services remained suspended owing to inclement weather, officials said.

The weather also forced the suspension of the yatra in the evening, even as 18,000 pilgrims visited the cave shrine during the day, they said.

The landslide struck the new track at Panchi late in the afternoon amid heavy rains, prompting the authorities to suspend the battery car service, the officials said.

They said the movement of the pilgrims was diverted to the old track but was later resumed after the debris were cleared. However, the battery car service has been suspended till further orders as a precautionary measure, they added.

The officials said the helicopter service remained suspended for the day due to the bad weather.

Most parts of Kashmir and high-altitude areas of Jammu region, including the Jawahar Tunnel, recorded moderate snowfall, while the plains including Jammu city and Katra – the base camp for pilgrims visiting the Vaishno Devi shrine – were lashed by intermittent rains since early Tuesday.

According to an advisory issued by the meteorological department, moderate to heavy rain or snow is most likely during January 5-8.

The officials said snowfall was also reported from the upper reaches of the Trikuta hills, but there was no snowfall yet at the shrine, where the yatra was temporarily suspended from the evening till Thursday morning for safety of pilgrims.

The weather office said Katra recorded 84.2 mm of rainfall from January 3 (8.30 am) till January 5 (5.30 pm), which was the highest in Jammu region. Jammu city witnessed 48.3 mm of rainfall during the same period.

The officials said despite inclement weather, 18,000 pilgrims visited the cave shrine during the day.

The yatra was stopped from the base camp in Katra at 6 pm but those who were on their way to the cave or had reached the Bhawan were allowed to perform 'darshan' and offer prayers, they said.

The officials said the yatra is likely to resume on Thursday morning.