A total of 8,796 pilgrims left the Bhagwati Nagar Yatri Niwas in Jammu in the ninth batch of the ongoing Shri Amarnath Ji Yatra-2026 during the early hours of Friday under tight security arrangements.
According to officials, 3,450 pilgrims departed via the Baltal route, while 5,346 pilgrims proceeded towards the traditional Pahalgam route.
The Baltal-bound convoy left Jammu at 2:42 a.m., followed by the Pahalgam-bound convoy at 3:24 a.m.
The batch comprised 6,426 men, 2,042 women, 228 sadhus, 56 sadhvis, 10 children, 33 foreign male pilgrims, and one transgender pilgrim.
A total of 354 vehicles were deployed for the day’s convoy, including 175 buses, 70 medium motor vehicles (MMVs), 106 light motor vehicles (LMVs), and three two-wheelers. Of these, 173 vehicles were assigned to the Baltal axis and 181 vehicles to the Pahalgam axis.
With the departure of the ninth batch, the total number of pilgrims who have left the Jammu base camp for the annual Shri Amarnath Ji Yatra has reached 61,612, officials said.
