Pilgrims stuck in Amarnath cave for a week return to Ranchi

Ranchi: A dozen of pilgrims, who were trapped in the Amarnath cave but survived the cloudburst on July 8, returned to the city on Friday. After their arrival, the pilgrims narrated their ordeal and said they survived by the grace of ‘Bholenath’.
People of all religions, social and political groups accorded a warm welcome to the Amarnath pilgrims here. They arrived at the Ranchi railway station at 10:30 am and were greeted with garlands and a musical parade.
Gautam Dubey Gopi, who has been a regular Amarnath Yatra pilgrim for the last 12 years, said, “I never expected that I will experience this type of crisis and will be trapped there for more than one week. The pilgrimage from the Baltal base camp to the Amarnath cave is 14 kilometres and takes about six to eight hours on foot. We took the Baltal route which is a shorter but more difficult trip. I reached there on July 3 and the continuous rainfall started from July 5 and the after the cloudburst, we were stranded inside the cave. Fortunately, I and my wife are safe by the grace of God.”
Niraj Sinha, another pilgrim, said, “On July 7, our group of 15 people reached Baltal and started the yatra. Eight members of our group lost their mobile phones, wallets and other identity cards. We cheated death and thankfully, we are now home.”
Naveen Singh, who also returned along with his fellow pilgrims, said he had heard about the fierce form of ‘Bholenath’, but it was during this Amarnath Yatra that he witnessed his fierce form.