Indian Kashmir spends $72 million for Hindu pilgrimage tourism

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India is hailing a Hindu pilgrimage to a holy cave high in the snow-capped mountains of contested Kashmir as an example of communal harmony, in a region where the Muslim majority population is overwhelmingly hostile to its rule.

India and arch-rival Pakistan have fought two wars over Kashmir, and came close to a third in February after a suicide-bomb attack by Pakistan-based militants on Indian paramilitary police near the pilgrimage route.

India’s Hindu-nationalist government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made “pilgrimage tourism” a focus, spending huge sums on January’s Kumbh Mela festival, where more than a hundred million Indians came to bathe in the holy Ganges river.

For the Amarnath Yatra pilgrimage in the Pahalgam area, the Jammu and Kashmir state government has spent a record $72 million on preparations for the six-week event that began on July 1.

“It is a perfect example of religious harmony,” said Anup Kumar Soni, additional chief executive of the Amarnath Ji Shrine Board, which organises the pilgrimage. Amarnath Cave, covered by snow almost all year round, contains an ice stalagmite that is considered a physical manifestation of Lord Shiva, a Hindu god.

Saffron-clad Hindu ascetics, some barefoot and with photos of the cave around their necks, trudge the 46 km (28 mile) route to the cave across glaciers and waterlogged trails. Muslim Kashmiri villagers in long woollen coats clear the way of snow and ice, and thousands of Indian troops are deployed to guard against attacks by Muslim militant groups.

The route is arduous. One in four of the 300,000 pilgrims who have visited this year have required medical treatment, and 24 have died, mainly from heart attacks and hypertension, according to government statistics. (RTRS)

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