New Delhi, June 6: India will deploy an unprecedented security force of 581 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs), alongside drones, jammers and sniffer dogs, to safeguard the upcoming Amarnath Yatra pilgrimage in Jammu and Kashmir, officials said on Thursday.
The 38-day pilgrimage to the Himalayan shrine, scheduled to run from July 3 to August 9, will be held under the tightest security ever following heightened terror threats, including the April 22 attack in Pahalgam that killed 25 tourists and a local resident. The attack was followed by a large-scale Indian military retaliation dubbed “Operation Sindoor” against Pakistan-backed militant bases.
According to officials, nearly 50,000 CRPF personnel will be deployed across both the Pahalgam and Baltal routes of the yatra, undertaking convoy escort duties, road clearance operations and rapid response deployments.
“Layered security arrangements have been planned, including Road Opening Parties, Quick Action Teams, Bomb Disposal Squads, and K9 sniffer units,” a senior official told Reuters. Drones will conduct round-the-clock aerial surveillance to detect suspicious movement along the pilgrimage routes.
In a first, the government will also deploy signal jammers to neutralise threats from remote-controlled improvised explosive devices (IEDs). All roads connecting to National Highways will be temporarily sealed off to facilitate secure movement of yatri convoys, which will be escorted by CRPF teams equipped with satellite phones.
The pilgrimage, curtailed from last year’s 52-day schedule to 38 days, comes as the region remains on high alert. Jammu and Kashmir’s police chief Nalin Prabhat earlier this week directed forces to strengthen anti-sabotage and surveillance capabilities. Pilgrims and vehicles will be tracked using radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags for real-time monitoring.
The heightened measures reflect New Delhi’s concern over militant activity in the region, as well as its intent to ensure a smooth and incident-free pilgrimage for thousands of Hindu devotees.
The Amarnath Yatra, which involves a trek to the cave shrine at 3,880 meters (12,700 feet) to worship an ice stalagmite believed to represent Lord Shiva, attracts tens of thousands of pilgrims annually.
