Source: www.guardian.co.uk
UK, July 7, 2009: Over 20 pilgrims from India have died in the past two weeks during the Amarnath Yatra, in Kashmir, one of the holiest pilgrimages a Hindu can make. Devotees trek to above 4,400m to reach a cave featuring a naturally formed ice Shiva Lingam.
Up to 10 pilgrims from across south Asia also died in the past month from altitude-related illnesses near sacred Mount Kailash, in Tibet. “Because pilgrims typically ascend very rapidly by helicopter, aircraft or vehicles, they are unable to acclimatize to the altitude,” said Buddha Basnyat, the medical commission president of the International Mountaineering and Climbing Federation.
Over 200,000 pilgrims are expected to visit the Amarnath caves this summer, but medical experts say governments are not doing enough to warn pilgrims of the dangers of high altitude.