Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Thursday flagged off the first batch of Amarnath Yatra pilgrims from the Bhagwati Nagar base camp here amid a multi-tier security cover for their onward journey to the twin base camps of Pahalgam and Baltal in Kashmir.

The 57-day pilgrimage to the 3,880-metre-high Amarnath cave shrine is scheduled to begin on July 3 simultaneously via the traditional 48-km Nunwan-Pahalgam route in the Anantnag district and the shorter but steeper 14-km Baltal route in the Ganderbal district. The yatra will conclude on August 28.