Official: If there is no decrease in temperature, the Lingam will melt completely in next few days
Srinagar: The Shiva Lingam at the cave shrine of Amarnath has shrunk more than 70% since the commencement of annual Yatra on June 28, official said today.
Shiva Lingam, a stalagmite worshipped by Hindus as the phallus of Shiva, was 16 to 18 feet long when the Yatra started and only after ten days, its length has come down to 4 feet, a top official revealed on condition of anonymity. There is more than a month still left for Yatra to conclude.
Sonam Lotus, Director of the Srinagar Met department said, “Srinagar is slightly more warmer than it should have been this summer. That has resulted in snows in heights in and around Sonmarg melting at a faster rate. Moreover, less amount of snow had accumulated this year than previous years.”
This year’s Amarnath Yatra begins from June 28 for roughly 52 days. Met officials believe that if there is no respite from the heat, many pilgrims would have to be content with the trek and return without the darshan of the icy stalagmite formation.
Official said if there is no decrease in temperature, the Lingam will melt completely within a matter of days.
He said the number of Yatris visiting the cave this year is much lesser than what it was last year as the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board is strictly following the directions of the Supreme Court and allowing only 15,000 Yatris to visit the cave from both Balatal and Pahalgam route per day.
We havent seen more than 5,000 yatris visiting the cave. Registration system has regulated the Yatra in a decent manner. The Shiv Lingam, however, is melting at a rapid pace and if it will melt before the duration of the yatra, that would be the biggest disappointment for the pilgrims, said SS Rawat, Commanding Officer, 54 CRPF.
“The Amarnath cave region witnessed long spells of warmer temperature compared to previous years. This could be one of the reasons for early melting of the ice lingam but another important factor is the human induced temperature around the cave, said another official.
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