Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Amarnathji Yatra : the arrangements

I was really shocked at the arrangements made by the government for the most difficult yatra to the holy Amarnath cave. We reached the holy cave on the very first day of the start of yatra but still we found things were in mess. The arrangements at Baltal were really bad, all the tents and other shelters that were there were just trying to earn money without providing any services to the yatris. There was no adequate arrangement for satisfying the basic needs of the people there. There was no clear cut communication from the security staff and personals regarding the start time etc of the yatra, everybody had a different answer. The major emphasis was on making money through ponies and helpers.

I was although impresses by the services that the Indian army officers were providing to the yatris, they were working out of their skin to help the yatris in all possible ways. They were even willing to carry your child for some distance if they found that the person/child was having trouble walking the difficult paths leading to the holy cave. The arrangement just near the holy cave was absolutely stunning and I was really surprised at the level of sophistication that the military maintained at the holy cave and the way they performed their duties was unparalleled.

I was also disappointed by the Langers that we encountered and the services that were provided there. Generally we associate great service and respect with each Langar but this time the Langers looked more like they were doing their job more than anything else. The best Langar that I found where the service was really like I have seen at different places was the Langer by some Delhi Association at the Mahagun Top which is about 14800 feet above sea level. There were a few other that really felt as if they wanted to serve the Yatris but most of them were disappointing.

Overall I would say that the arrangements were not as one expects them to be in such pious and auspicious environment. Even the people were not helping the cause due to their silly activities which included throwing crap on the main path of the Yatra. We could even see so many poly bags and plastic bottles being thrown into the valley and thus disrupting the nature and atmosphere out there. But the treatment we got from the civilians was exceptional, every one was so very calm and full of respect, they actually treated us as their guests and gave us a very warm welcome. Still I expected more specially from the Governments side to assist the Yatris who have come there.

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