Ahead of the annual pilgrimage to the cave shrine of Amarnath in India's Jammu & Kashmir Union Territory, the BRO used the Indian Air Force's heavy-lift Chinook helicopters to transport heavy equipment to maintain the track leading up to the holy place.
"Project Beacon tasked to maintain tracks leading to Holy Amarnath Cave Shrine in J&K shifted equipment using Indian Air Force's Chinook helicopters from Sonamarg to Panchtarni to expedite the allocated task," the BRO said on Twitter.
Dedicated to Lord Shiva, the Amarnath shrine is located in the Anantnag district of Jammu and Kashmir region. Every year, thousands of devotees from different parts of the country undertake an arduous pilgrimage up to the cave, situated at an elevation of 3,888 metres, where Hindus' Lord Shiva is believed to have appeared in a snow stalagmite form.
However, the road leading to the shrine falls on a narrow strip of land with a deep gorge on one side. Because it is quite difficult to maintain the road, BRO generally carries out major repair work days ahead of the commencement of the pilgrimage.
This year's religious expedition to Amarnath is tentatively scheduled to begin in mid-June before culminating at the end of August.
On the other side, this isn't the first time, the BRO has used Chinook choppers to construct roads in frontier regions.
Previously, the agency has secured the services of the Chinooks to lift excavator and other equipment along the India-China border in Arunachal Pradesh state.
This year's religious expedition to Amarnath is tentatively scheduled to begin in mid-June before culminating at the end of August.
On the other side, this isn't the first time, the BRO has used Chinook choppers to construct roads in frontier regions.
Previously, the agency has secured the services of the Chinooks to lift excavator and other equipment along the India-China border in Arunachal Pradesh state.