YATRA? REALLY

Amarnath pilgrimage could undo the painstaking efforts to control the virus in Kashmir, writes Riyaz Wani

- Riyaz Wani

With the annual Amarnath yatra drawing near, the Jammu and Kashmir administration is yet to take a final call on whether the pilgrimage will go ahead or not. Earlier in April, the administration suspended the registrations of pilgrims in view of the sudden outbreak of the second Covid-19 wave, which soon overwhelmed the country. Now, with the infections plunging sharply across India and also within Jammu and Kashmir, the government seems to be toying with the idea to let the pilgrimage go ahead. But the prospect is fraught with risk.

Last week, home minister Amit Shah held a meeting with Lt Governor Manoj Sinha. The meeting was also attended by the outgoing Jammu and Kashmir Chief Secretary, BVR Subrahmanyam, his successor Dr Arun K Mehta, Intelligence Bureau (IB) Chief, Arvind Kumar, Director General of Police (DGP) Dilbag Singh and ADG, J&K Police CID.

Yatra was supposed to be one of the top points of discussion.

A VISIBLE UNEASE

This has generated some unease in Kashmir where people apprehend that the yatra will lead to a fresh surge in the cases of Coronavirus. Moreso, as it could spread the virulent Covid-19 strain to Kashmir too. The variant wrought havoc across India leading to an exponential rise in infections. Though the caseload has currently been contained to a large extent, it is yet to be reined in. The cases in Kashmir are also not under control, hovering still around one thousand, the peak of last year, with the Valley witnessing the major chunk of them.