Rescue ops briefly hit but IAF makes up for lost time; more policemen airlifted to Srinagar to maintain order
Weather gods in Srinagar hampered the ongoing rescue and relief operations during the first half of the day on Sunday, but the situation improved before noon with the arrival of relief material from different parts of the country for immediate distribution among the flood-affected population.
To make up for the loss of crucial hours, IAF personnel scaled up rescue operations. So far, 1.84 lakh civilians have been evacuated to safer places by the joint efforts of the Indian Army, IAF, NDRF and local volunteers who have been working round-the-clock for the past eight days in stagnant waters.
According to ground reports, around 8.30 am as dark clouds started hovering over the skyline in Srinagar, the IAF suspended their operations due to poor visibility.
People living out in the open and those stranded inside their houses went into panic mode following suspension of relief operations.
Soon, rainfall accompanied by thunder and lightning lashed Srinagar and other parts of the Valley. However, the rainfall that started at around 8.30 am stopped within an hour allowing the IAF to resume their operations. Fresh rain has compounded the miseries of the people and multiplied the dangers as several structures are already in a bad shape and on the verge of collapsing, even as fear of epidemics looms large.
The ongoing work on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway was hampered due to fresh rains in the region, and it may take a little longer to clear the debris near Ramsoo, official sources said.
As the situation limps back to normal and the State Govern-ment is gearing up its machinery to take charge, more policemen from Jammu were airlifted to Srinagar to maintain law and order.
Meanwhile, to keep water-borne diseases at bay and stop the spread of epidemics, residents in other areas of Srinagar have now started burning heaps of garbage dumped along the city roads in the absence of employees of Srinagar Municipal Corporation.
While reviewing the pace of rehabilitation work, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah claimed that power supply has been restored in 60 per cent of the areas of Srinagar which are free of waterlogging and work is going on to restore it fully in areas of Jammu.
Significantly, Chief Secretary MI Khanday appealed to Government employees to report for duty as soon as possible.
"If you don't pay heed to this appeal, please listen to your conscience," the message on Radio Kashmir said.
The armed forces had earlier requested the State Government to provide cover to the NDRF and other rescue teams as more and more incidents of stone pelting were reported from certain pockets in Srinagar.
For the first time several policeman were seen discharging their duty on ground zero along the Airport Road, regulating traffic movement.
"We have inducted two battalions of Armed Police from Jammu for maintaining law and order in the Valley," a senior police officer said.
Communication has been restored in most of the police stations in flood-hit areas in Srinagar, DIG, Central Kashmir Range, Syed Ahfadul Mujtaba said.
Except for four, all police stations in the city have been linked with the communication system, he said.
"Efforts are on to connect the remaining police stations for better management and coordination of relief and rescue efforts in inundated areas," Mujtaba said.
Several police stations, which are either not affected by floods or where the water has receded, have been turned into base camps for relief distribution in inundated areas, he said.
The District Police line, submerged under water, caused a major problem to the police department's efforts in providing succour to the flood-hit population, Mujtaba said.
Meanwhile, over 1,84,000 people have been rescued so far by the Armed Forces and NDRF from different parts of Jammu & Kashmir
So far 2,253 sorties have been undertaken by the helicopters and aircraft of Armed Forces and 3017 tons of relief materials have been dropped by the Indian Air Force. Thirteen tons of water purifying tablets and six water filtration plants with a capacity to filter 1.2 lakh bottles per day have already reached Srinagar.
Eighty four transport aircraft and helicopters of Indian Air Force and Army Aviation Corps are continuing their efforts in rescue and relief operations and the armed forces have also established 19 relief camps in Srinagar and Jammu region.
A total of 224 boats of the Army and 148 NDRF's inflatable boats are actively involved in the rescue operation.
Engineering stores including suction pumps from Vishakhapatnam have reached the flood affected area. More heavy duty pumps are being airlifted from Jodhpur and Raipur. Sewage pumps from Delhi have also been dispatched to the Valley.
Thirty generator sets of 3 to 5 KVA capacity have also been sent to Srinagar to augment continuous power supply in relief camps and field hospitals. Additional communication equipment of BSNl are being dispatched to restore the communication systems in the State.
More relief materials including blankets and tents, water bottles from IRCTC and food packets are being airlifted from Patna, Delhi, Ahmedabad and Amritsar.