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Heavy snow in Kashmir grounds flights, Srinagar-Jammu highway closed
First major snowfall in Kashmir after three years will have good impact on horticulture, agriculture and tourism industry
Normal life was thrown out of gear in Kashmir on Saturday as most areas of the Valley received snowfall, disrupting flight and rail operations and also leading to the closure of the Srinagar-Jammu national highway, officials said.
Moderate to heavy snowfall was recorded across Kashmir since Friday, including the season’s first snowfall in Srinagar city and other plain areas of the Valley.
In south Kashmir, heavy to very heavy snowfall was recorded in the plains, while central Kashmir’s plains received moderate snowfall. The plains of north Kashmir received light to moderate snowfall.
Snow ends prolonged dry spell
This is the first major snowfall in Kashmir after three years. The timely snowfall has ended the ongoing dry spell in the Valley that was not only affecting the water table but also flow in rivers and streams.
“After many years, the Valley, especially south Kashmir, has witnessed timely snowfall. It will help recharge our water table. In the last season, the Valley witnessed snowfall only in the last week of January,” said Abdul Gaffar Bhat, a Srinagar-based horticulture and water resources expert. “This snowfall will have a good impact on our horticulture, agriculture and tourism industry,” he added.
Srinagar recorded about eight inches of snow, while neighbouring Ganderbal recorded about seven inches. Sonamarg got around eight inches of snow.
The Zojila axis along the Srinagar-Leh highway received about 15 inches of snow. Budgam district got 7-10 inches of snow, while the plains in Anantnag district recorded 17 inches.
The upper areas of the south Kashmir district received over two feet of snow, the officials said. The tourist town of Pahalgam recorded 18 inches of fresh snowfall.
Areas in Pulwama district recorded 10-15 inches of snow, while neighbouring Kulgam received 18-25 inches and Shopian recorded around 18 inches of snowfall.
In Bandipora district of north Kashmir, the plains recorded four inches of snow, while the higher reaches, including Gurez, received 6 to 10 inches of snowfall. Areas in Baramulla district recorded 4-9 inches of snow, while the famous ski resort of Gulmarg received about 15 inches of snow. Kupwara plains received 1-2 inches of snow, and its upper reaches recorded 2-3 inches.
Snow-clearance efforts hampered
Even though the snowfall was welcomed by locals and tourists, it threw normal life out of gear. The Jammu-Srinagar national highway (NH-44) was closed for traffic due to snow. The traffic department said clearance work was being hampered due to heavy snowfall at the Navyug Tunnel.
Men and machinery are on the job and commuters are advised to avoid travel until the weather improves and the road is cleared, the officials said.
Train services on the Banihal-Baramulla section were suspended due to heavy snow accumulation on the track, the railway officials said. Efforts to clear the track are underway.
Weather grounds flights
Air traffic to and from Srinagar was also affected as flight operations at the airport were suspended due to snowfall.
“Due to bad weather conditions, all flights at Srinagar airport have been cancelled. Passengers are advised to contact their airlines for updates. We regret the inconvenience and appreciate your understanding,” Srinagar airport posted on X.
The runway has been cleared but operations can resume only after improvement in the weather, the airport officials said.
Train services also suspended
Train services on the Banihal-Baramulla section were suspended on Saturday due to heavy snow accumulation on the track, railway officials said.
MeT office says didn’t expect heavy snowfall.
Meteorological officer in Srinagar Mukthair Ahmad described the heavy snowfall unexpected.
“No model suggested heavy snowfall for KMR Div even yesterday. As per forecast rain was expected for plains of Jammu & light snow over middle & higher reaches of Chenab valley & South Kashmir and didn’t expected that much moisture flow over South and Central Kashmir,” he said adding that there will be improvement from today evening at most places of Kashmir division.”
Power supply hit, CM monitors situation
The snowfall also affected power supply in several areas of the Valley. Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah was monitoring the situation.
“In Kashmir region, 41 feeders at the 33KV level and 739 feeders at the 11KV level are down. None at the 132 KV or 220 KV levels. Restoration work is underway, and more than 90% of feeders are expected to be functional by this evening. I’m in regular touch with the PDD team to monitor the situation,” Abdullah posted on X.
Later chief minister posted another message saying that more feeders were restored by evening. “Out of fortyone 33KV feeders dysfunctional in Kashmir due to heavy snowfall, thirty seven have been restored and charged. Similarly, out of 739 dysfunctional 11KV feeders, 639 have been restored and recharged, bringing a major relief to the valley. The majority of the rest are expected to be restored by the evening. Kudos to the PDD team for their relentless efforts in this snow fall in such a short time.”
Kashmir University postponed all its examinations scheduled for Saturday due to the inclement weather. Fresh dates will be notified separately, the university said.
Minimum temperature improves
The meteorological department in Srinagar has forecast snowfall till late Saturday afternoon. “The weather will remain dry for next two days,” a MeT official said, adding that Valley could receive more snow in the first week of January.
Meanwhile, minimum temperatures improved by several degrees across the Valley, the MeT department said.
Srinagar recorded a low of -1 degree Celsius on Friday night, more than six degrees up from the previous night’s low of -7.3 degrees Celsius.
Gulmarg recorded a low of -5 degrees Celsius, while Pahalgam registered a minimum temperature of -2.8 degrees Celsius.
Qazigund logged a minimum of -0.6 degrees Celsius, while Konibal recorded -1.5 degrees Celsius.
Kupwara recorded a low of -1.2 degrees Celsius, while south Kashmir’s Kokernag registered -1.5 degrees Celsius.
Omar drives to Ganderbal; chairs meeting to review snow clearance operations
Chief minister Omar Abdullah convened a video conference meeting with all district across Jammu and Kashmir to review snow clearance operations and restoration of essential services following heavy snowfall in the Kashmir Valley.
The meeting held at the video conference hall in Ganderbal, was attended in person by advisor to the CM Nasir Aslam Wani, Ganderbal deputy commissioner Shyambir, Ganderbal ADC and other senior district officials. Chief secretary, divisional commissioners of Kashmir and Jammu and deputy commissioners from all districts participated via video conferencing.
During the meeting, deputy commissioners presented updates on snow clearance, restoration of power and water supply and emergency response to deal with inclement weather. “The CM directed deputy commissioners to personally supervise snow clearance operations, emphasising the need to obtain photographic evidence of cleared areas to ensure thorough removal and prevent freezing road condition as temperatures drop and called for a proactive approach, urging officials to deploy adequate manpower and machinery on the ground,” J&K official spokesman. “The chief engineer of Public Health Engineering (PHE) informed the CM that 90% of the water supply across the valley has been restored, with efforts underway to address the remaining 10%. The divisional commissioner of Jammu reported that power and water supply in Jammu districts remain unaffected, while the chief secretary confirmed steady progress in restoring electricity feeders and assured that district hospitals are functioning smoothly.”
