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Rediff.com  » News » 11 Amarnath pilgrims hurt in blast

11 Amarnath pilgrims hurt in blast

By Mukhtar Ahmed in Srinagar
Last updated on: July 21, 2007 14:50 IST
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Eleven pilgrims, including three Sadhus, were wounded when militants hurled a grenade that exploded inside the compound of the local Gurdwara in Pahalgam Saturday afternoon.

"Attending doctors have described the conditions of three of the wounded pilgrims as critical and they have been shifted to Srinagar city for specialized treatment," a senior police officer said in Srinagar.

This is the second militant attack on the Amarnath cave shrine bound pilgrims this year after the two-month long pilgrimage started on June 30.

Earlier this week, one Kashmiri was killed and ten others, including eight Tibetan vendors and two pilgrims, wounded when militants exploded a grenade at the entrance to the north Kashmir's Baltal base.

Meanwhile, a batch of 1000 pilgrims left the Pahalgam camp for the cave shrine early Saturday morning.

Over 1.54 lakh pilgrims have so far paid obeisance at the shrine since the official commencement of yatra on July two.

Nearly 6,000 to 7,000 devotees had offered prayers on Friday at the 3,880 metre high cave shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas.

Security has been beefed up along the national highway from Jammu-Srinagar national highway and along the routes leading to the cave shrine.

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Mukhtar Ahmed in Srinagar