Five Dead, 14 Injured in Landslide on Vaishno Devi Shrine Route

A landslide caused by relentless rain killed five and injured 14 on the Vaishno Devi trek in Jammu’s Reasi, forcing suspension of the yatraPhoto -PTI

Pilgrimage suspended in Reasi after heavy rain triggers disaster near Adhkwari.

Jammu: Relentless heavy rain led to a landslide on the route to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine atop the Trikuta hill on Tuesday afternoon, killing at least five people and injuring 14, officials said. The pilgrimage to the famed shrine in Jammu and Kashmir’s Reasi district was suspended when the landslide happened, officials said.

Rescue operations are underway near the Inderprastha Bhojnalaya at Adhkwari where the landslide hit around 3 pm, they said. The disaster struck at a point about halfway along the winding 12-km trek to the hilltop shrine.

The yatra had been suspended on the Himkoti trek route since morning but had been going on on the old route till 1.30 pm when authorities decided to suspend it till further orders in view of the torrential rain. Three days of continuous rain has wreaked havoc across many parts of Jammu.

( Source : PTI )