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Tight security has been imposed as Hindu pilgrimage begins in Kashmir

The annual Hindu pilgrimage to a sacred Himalayan cave in Indian-administered Kashmir began on Friday amid tight security that includes the deployment of thousands of paramilitaries and police. Tens of thousands of Hindus travel, ride horses or take a helicopter ride to the Himalayan cave called Amarnath, located at an altitude of about 3,888 meters (12,756 feet). Hindus believe that a natural ice stalagmite in the cave, believed to have been discovered by a Muslim shepherd in the nineteenth century, is a manifestation of the Hindu deity Shiva. Before the 90s, the pilgrimage was a low-key affair lasting 15-30 days,