Fresh batch of pilgrims leave for Amarnath

Jammu: A batch of 1,720 pilgrims today left for the cave shrine of Amarnath in south Kashmir Himalayas amidst tight security. The batch comprising 1,171 men, 441 women, 14 children and 94 others left in a cavalcade of 41 vehicles from Bhagwati Nagar base camp here at 4:55 AM, a police official said. The convoy has already reached Kud on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway. With today’s batch, as many as 34,409 pilgrims have so far left from the Jammu base camp for the Amarnath shrine. Over 2,30,000 pilgrims have visited the shrine till last evening.