Srinagar, Kashmir  - Protests against a land transfer for a popular Hindu pilgrimage spread in India-administered Kashmir on Wednesday as business activity in the state capital Srinagar and other areas came to a halt, news reports and officials said.

Two people were killed and nearly 100 others, including 22 policemen, were injured in clashes between groups led by the separatist Hurriyat Conference and the police in Srinagar since Monday, police said.

Police and paramilitary forces were also dispatched to Budgam, Pulwama, Anantnag, Baramulla and Bandipore districts which have witnessed protests against the state government's controversial move.

The government last month decided to allot 40 hectares of forest land to the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board, that organizes the pilgrimage to Amarnath cave, considered one of the holiest shrines in the Hindu faith.

In Srinagar, groups took out protest marches and shops, business establishments and educational institutions remained closed while bus services remained off the roads.

In some areas of the city, police used batons and tear gas to disperse angry mobs that pelted stones targeting police and their vehicles.

Meanwhile, the Hindu pilgrimage was suspended as protestors blocked the shrine route and pelted stones at police personnel and vehicles carrying Hindu pilgrims, the IANS reported.

The government said the land was allotted for construction of facilities for the pilgrims, including prefabricated huts and toilets.

But Hurriyat leaders said the decision to transfer land was part of a conspiracy to settle non-Muslims in the Muslim-majority state.

Kashmir, a picturesque region, has witnessed much bloodshed since a separatist revolt peaked in the late 1980s.

According to government data, more than 40,000 people - civilians, militants and security forces - have been killed in Indian-administered Kashmir since the 1990s. (dpa)