Winter has virtually returned to Kashmir following 48 hours of incessant rain and snowfall that cut off aerial and land routes to the Valley, disrupted power supply and inundated roads. The authorities have closed schools and colleges while the Kashmir University has rescheduled all examinations. The weatherman has predicted more snowfall in next two days.
The weather turned freaky on Sunday morning followed by uninterrupted downpour. While in the plains it was rainfall, the upper reaches were enveloped by thick layers of snow. Police said they rescued 48 members of 12 families from Waltengo Nar village of south Kashmir’s Qazigund pocket, which was swept by blizzards in 2003. Two families have been rescued from Maspora village of Pulwama district.
The residents have again pulled out woollens and resorted to the use of kangri, the earthen pot filled with ambers that is held by Kashmiris under traditional woollen cloaks. The power outages have added to the woes of the common people. In Srinagar, chaos ruled the roads inundated by rainwater. Most of the roads were not negotiable on Tuesday morning.
The 300-km Srinagar-Jammu National Highway was closed due to landslides. “Many passenger and goods vehicles are stranded on the highway. We have stopped passage of vehicles. Continuous snowfall is reported from Jawahir Tunnel area and 30-km stretch beyond it,” a senior traffic police official told The Pioneer. The poor visibility at the Srinagar International Airport prevented landing of flights from outside Kashmir for the second consecutive day.
Hundreds of passengers waited endlessly at the airport but the authorities declared that no flight would operate due to inclement weather. “The airport resembled a fish market as hundreds of people, especially tourists, were jostling to catch flights. The airport authorities announced delay in flights hoping the weather would improve but in the afternoon all flights were cancelled,” said Shafat Kira, a journalist who was off to Delhi for a meeting.
The weather turned freaky after a few sunny days in the first week of March, which had heralded arrival of pleasant spring season. The authorities announced closure of schools for three days. The schools had reopened on March 5 after a three-month long winter break.
Some printing presses on city’s outskirts have decided to close down due to lack of power and water supply. “Because of the closure of printing presses, many newspapers will not be published on Wednesday,” newspaper distributor Fayaz Mir said. “Hawkers in the countryside have send messages that they won’t be able to receive newspapers bundles in the morning,” Mir said.
The snowfall is, however, relished by tourists and tour operators. “Many tourists had arrived here to see snow in Gulmarg and Pahalgam. Watching snowfall is a bonus for them and they are enjoying to the hilt,” Bashir Ahmad, a hotelier from Gulmag said. The additional snowfall has also enhanced chances for prolonging winter games in Gulmarg. Several competitions and winter games are underway in the famous ski-resort.