SRINAGAR, India: More than 400,000 Hindus took part in a month-long pilgrimage in contested Indian-run Kashmir, authorities said, shrugging off security worries weeks after conflict with Pakistan.
The pilgrimage began on July 3 and closes officially on August 9, but organizers said that lashing rains had damaged narrow paths forcing a premature end.
Official Vijay Kumar Bidhuri said in a statement late Saturday that 415,000 pilgrims had taken part.
Many of the faithful began their trek to the Amarnath ice pillar from near Pahalgam, where gunmen on April 22 killed 26 mostly Hindu tourists in the Muslim-majority region.
New Delhi said the gunmen were backed by Pakistan, claims Islamabad rejected — triggering a series of tit-for-tat diplomatic measures that escalated into a four-day conflict.
