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Orange alert in Kashmir, 42 flights cancelled in Srinagar
Weatherman predicts heavy snowfall till January 8; Gulmarg in north Kashmir recorded 21.8cm of snow till Tuesday morning
Jammu and Kashmir experienced widespread light to moderate snowfall and rainfall with Srinagar city and its adjoining areas receiving season’s first snow on Tuesday. The inclement weather led to cancellation and delay of flights at the Srinagar airport.
J&K’s meteorological (MeT) department said a western disturbance brought snow in the Valley last night and it started snowing in Srinagar by the morning. The department also issued an ‘orange alert’ for Kashmir.
The highest snowfall was observed in Gulmarg in north Kashmir, where 21.8cm of snow was recorded till morning. “Pahalagm in south Kashmir recorded 13.5cm snow, while it was 5cm in Kupwara,” said a MeT official.
Srinagar recorded 7.1mm rain while it was 4mm in Qazigund and Konibal. Jammu’s Banihal received 11.4mm rain and Bhaderwah 8.6mm.
The MeT official said, “The weather is expected to be bad from January 4 to 8 when we may receive widespread snowfall and rains.”
The administration has pressed into service men and machinery from Tuesday morning to start snow-clearance operation. The traffic on Srinagar-Jammu Highway, meanwhile, was moving amid light snowfall. “For now, the road is open and traffic movement is going on as usual,” said an official of the traffic control room at 11am.
IMD has issued a weather advisory to the administrations of J&K and Ladakh, warning them of two successive western disturbances with heavy snowfall during January 5-8.
The minimum night temperatures in Kashmir improved with Srinagar recording 0.6 degrees Celsius, while the mercury plunged lowest in Gulmarg to settle at -5 degrees Celsius. Banihal recorded a minimum night temperature of 1.4 degrees while it was 11.8 in Jammu. In Ladakh, Drass recorded lowest of -7.5°C while it was -7.4°C in Leh.
Chopper services to Vaishno Devi hit
The inclement weather partially affected normal life across 10 districts in Jammu region on Tuesday. Eight flights to Srinagar and Leh were cancelled from Jammu airport while chopper services to Vaishno Devi shrine from Katra was also affected.
Jammu airport director Sandeep Kumar Garg said, “Eight flights to Srinagar and Leh were cancelled from Jammu due to inclement weather and poor visibility there.” He said that flight operations to all other destinations were normal.
Vaishno Devi also received fresh snow on Tuesday. At least 15,000 pilgrims visited the cave shrine on Tuesday. “Only seven to eight sorties were possible this morning and thereafter poor visibility compelled the operators to suspend the helicopter service to the shrine,” an official said. A white blanket of snow covered the higher reaches of hills in Doda and Kishtwar while the temperature dipped across the region.
Low visibility behind flight cancellation
As many as 42 flights which were scheduled to take off or land at Srinagar International Airport were cancelled on Tuesday owing to low visibility due to snowfall, which prompted former J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah to point out lack of ‘proper landing aids’ at the facility.
Officials of the Airport Authority of India said majority of the flights were cancelled after snow and rain lashed Srinagar and other parts of Kashmir valley, thus reducing visibility.
“Forty-two flights were cancelled out of the scheduled 44 due to low visibility at the airport owing to bad weather. The remaining two flights are scheduled for late evening and we will see whether they can be operated,” said Srinagar airport director Kuldeep Singh.
The mass cancellations drew harsh reactions from many, including National Conference vice-president Omar Abdullah.
“Our international airport has no landing aids that enable the runway to remain open when visibility dips. We make such a big deal about tourism & investment promotion now imagine the plight of those tourists who’ve sat all day outside the terminal & watched their flights get cancelled (sic),” Abdullah said in a tweet.
He claimed that travelling in and out of Kashmir was not a pleasant experience.
“Not to mention the locals who will have their tickets cancelled & be told to buy fresh ones with fares that touch the stratosphere. Travel into & out from the valley in winter is not a pleasant experience,” he tweeted.
The airport is under the operational control of the Indian Air Force (IAF) while the Airport Authority of India controls only the boarding and lodging operations.
Some people said that the airport authorities have failed to deliver.
“Only divine intervention can help people fly in and out of Kashmir in bad weather. @SrinagarAirport has failed to deliver on its tall claims of international standards,” said a radio host, Nasir Khan.
Srinagar airport, meanwhile, in a series of tweets said, “Continuous snow fall and poor visibility resulted in 42 cancellations today across all airlines. The visibility has now improved and the flights are operating.”
“All the passengers of the cancelled flights shall be rescheduled in the next available flight of the concerned airlines. There will be no extra charges for rescheduling. The passengers may also opt for full refund at their convenience (sic).”
Important helpline numbers
The Jammu administration has issued a list of important helpline numbers.
The numbers are PCR Ramban : 01998266384, 9906925595, 9906926079, SSP Ramban : 9205571332, Addl SP Ramban : 8825057800, DSP Hqrs Ramban: 9858512348, DSP DAR Ramban: 7780939696, 9858619994, SDPO Banihal: 9419989332, 9596072029, SDPO Gool: 7006670969, 9419699624, SHO PS Batote: 9149638978, SHO PS Chanderkote: 7006244910, SHO PS Ramban: 7006773728, SHO PS Ramsoo: 7889758950, SHO PS Banihal: 9596732389, SHO PS Dharamkund: 7889619601, SHO PS Gool: 8803799632, IC PP Patnitop: 9906128583, IC PP Rajgarh: 9797523811, IC PP Sangaldaan: 9796625616, IC PP Ind: 9469710018, IC PP Ukhral: 8803467939, IC PP Neel: 7006194205, IC PP Khari: 9149963818, IC PP Jawahar Tunnel: 9149552325.
