Close X
Monday, January 13, 2025
ADVT 
India

No Chanting Of Mantras At Amarnath, National Green Tribunal Declares Cave Shrine 'Silence Zone'

Darpan News Desk IANS, 13 Dec, 2017 01:41 PM
    In a bid to preserve the eco-sensitive Amarnath cave shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas, the National Green Tribunal on Wednesday declared it a “silence zone” and prohibited religious offerings beyond the entry point.
     
     
    A bench headed by NGT chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar said the Amarnath Shrine Board should ensure that proper infrastructural facilities are provided to the pilgrims so that they are not deprived of a clear ‘darshan’, and the ecology of the area is maintained.
     
     
    The NGT earlier said declaring the area around the Amarnath cave shrine a "silence zone" would be helpful in preventing avalanches and maintaining its pristine nature.
     
     
    “Nobody would be permitted to carry anything from the stairs leading to the holy cave and everybody should be properly frisked at the entry point. From the point of stairs and the area inside the cave should be declared silence zone," the bench said.
     
     
    The green panel ordered removal of iron grills in front of the ice stalagmite resembling the 'Shiva Linga' so that devotees could get a better view of it and said there should be no noise pollution near the sacred structure.
     
     
    It also restrained carriage of personal belongings, including mobile phones beyond the last checkpoint, and asked the shrine board to construct a place where pilgrims can keep their valuables.
     
     
     
    The green panel also directed the committee of experts headed by an additional secretary of the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) to submit an action plan on providing facilities to the pilgrims within three weeks.
     
     
    Environment activist Gauri Maulekhi, on whose plea the directions were passed, welcomed the NGT order and termed it “progressive”.
    “The Amarnath cave is located in a delicate ecosystem.
     
     
    The directions would make the Amarnath Yatra safe and convenient for the devotees. This would protect the shrine from degradation and ensure it is protected for the coming generations. It is indeed a very good and progressive direction," Maulekhi told.
    The matter will be heard again on January 18 next year.
     
     
    In November, the NGT rapped the Amarnath Shrine Board for not providing proper infrastructural facilities to pilgrims going to the cave shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas, saying it could not "deprive people of proper darshan".
     
     
    The green panel took exception to non-compliance with the directions issued by the Supreme Court in 2012 and asked the board what steps it had taken in all these years.
     
     
     
    The bench directed the experts committee to submit report on aspects such providing a proper path and declaring the cave shrine a "silence zone" while maintaining cleanliness in the area.
     
     
    The Amarnath cave shrine is considered to be one of the holiest in Hinduism. The cave itself is covered with snow most of the year except for a short period of time in summer when it is open for pilgrims.

    MORE India ARTICLES

    Canada Needs To Check Radical Elements On Its Soil: Punjab CM Amarinder Singh

    Canada Needs To Check Radical Elements On Its Soil: Punjab CM Amarinder Singh
    Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Friday asked Canada to rein in radical elements such as Khalistani separatists from spreading hatred in India.

    Canada Needs To Check Radical Elements On Its Soil: Punjab CM Amarinder Singh

    'Rohaan – Keep Smiling': Sushma Swaraj Meets Pakistani Infant Who Underwent Surgery At Noida

    'Rohaan – Keep Smiling': Sushma Swaraj Meets Pakistani Infant Who Underwent Surgery At Noida
    Rohaan was brought to India on July 12 and was operated on July 14.

    'Rohaan – Keep Smiling': Sushma Swaraj Meets Pakistani Infant Who Underwent Surgery At Noida

    'Ganja, Smack... I'll Have Just Anything' Says Youth Who Tried Abducting Baby

    'Ganja, Smack... I'll Have Just Anything' Says Youth Who Tried Abducting Baby
    Wrapped in a blue towel, a month and 10 days old Yash half-opened his eyes for a moment as his mother kissed his cheeks and pulled his chin at a city police office on Friday

    'Ganja, Smack... I'll Have Just Anything' Says Youth Who Tried Abducting Baby

    Supreme Court Seeks Time Frame For Amending Law To Allow NRI Voting From Overseas

    Supreme Court Seeks Time Frame For Amending Law To Allow NRI Voting From Overseas
    The Supreme Court on Friday sought to know from the Central government the time it would require for bringing a bill amending the Representation of People Act to allowing NRIs vote from their overseas locations.

    Supreme Court Seeks Time Frame For Amending Law To Allow NRI Voting From Overseas

    WATCH: Video Of Patiala Woman Beaten Up By In-Laws Over Dowry Goes Viral

    WATCH: Video Of Patiala Woman Beaten Up By In-Laws Over Dowry Goes Viral
    In a shameful incident, a woman was allegedly beaten by her brother-in-law and his friend in Punjab's Patiala.

    WATCH: Video Of Patiala Woman Beaten Up By In-Laws Over Dowry Goes Viral

    1981 HIJACKING CASE: Amarinder Singh Directs Legal Aid Team To Help Out Sikhs Facing 'Double Trial'

    1981 HIJACKING CASE: Amarinder Singh Directs Legal Aid Team To Help Out Sikhs Facing 'Double Trial'
    Captain Amarinder Singh has directed the state’s Legal Aid Team to extend help to the two Sikhs faced with possibilities of ‘double jeopardy’ in the hijacking of an Indian Airlines plane to Lahore 36 years ago.

    1981 HIJACKING CASE: Amarinder Singh Directs Legal Aid Team To Help Out Sikhs Facing 'Double Trial'