Authorities on Friday suspended Amarnath yatra from Jammu in view of the continued strike in Kashmir Valley over transfer of forest land to Shri Amarnath Shrine Board.
The devotees were not allowed to proceed from Bhagwati Nagar base camp to the Amarnath cave shrine of Lord Shiva in the Kashmir Himalayas, official sources said.
The step has been taken as a precautionary measure for ensuring safety of pilgrims as protests over the land transfer issue were continuing in the valley for the last few days, they said.
This is the third time the pilgrimage was stopped from the base camp in Jammu ever since its commencement on June 17.
The yatra was suspended on June 20 due to bad weather and heavy rains across the Valley making the routes leading to the hill temple dangerous. It was again suspended on June 25 due to heavy rush at Nunwan and Baltal base camps in Kashmir.
Over three lakh pilgrims have already performed 'darshan' of the ice lingam at the 3,880-metre high cave shrine located in south Kashmir Himalayas.