Normal life has come to standstill after the fresh snowfall across occupied Jammu and Kashmir led to the cancellation of nearly two dozen flight operations and also the closure of main roads and highways including the Srinagar-Jammu highway in the territory.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the Kashmir valley and some parts of Jammu division continued to experience fresh snowfall including Srinagar.
According to the local Meteorological department, Gulmarg, a famous ski-resort and Kokernag in south Kashmir recorded a snowfall of 28.0 mm while Pahalgam received a snowfall of 27.7 mm. Sonamarg has recorded a snow depth of 5 ft in the last two days while Gulmarg has recorded a snow depth of 3.5 to 4 feet.
The Srinagar-Jammu highway, the only surface link of the Kashmir Valley with the rest of the world, was closed for vehicular traffic due to the landslides triggered due to incessant rains at various places on the road stretch between Ramban and Banihal in IIOJK.
Meanwhile, the Zojila Pass on Srinagar-Leh highway received over 4-5 ft of snow resulting in the closure of the road for any vehicular movement. The continuous snowfall and slippery road conditions led to disruption of the traffic movement particularly between Ganiwan to Gagengar (Sonamarg) on the Srinagar-Leh highway.
All other highways leading into the Valley like the Mughal Road, Sinthan-Kishtwar road, and those connecting the far flung areas of Gurez in Bandipora and Karnah/Keran in Kupwara with the district headquarters were also closed.
On the other hand, as many as 23 flights were cancelled at Srinagar Airport as the operations were hit due to continuous snowfall on Tuesday. At least six train services were cancelled due to the inclement weather conditions while many others got delayed due to bad weather conditions. In wake of the prevailing weather conditions, the authorities in the University of Kashmir postponed all examinations scheduled for today.—KMS
