Srinagar, Janu 30: Kashmir plains and higher reaches on Wednesday received fresh snowfall closing Srinagar- Jammu highway for traffic.
The fresh landslides in Ramban area has once again led to the closure of Srinagar-Jammu highway on Wednesday with official saying that the road clearance work on the road has been started.
Traffic officials told that landslides occurred in Ramban area today following which the authorities ordered closure of highway.
Notably, the highway was closed several times in the recent past due to which hundreds of commuters remain stuck on the highway for almost seven days. The road was earlier closed due to the snowfall that triggered slippery conditions of the road and avalanches at Jawahar Tunnel besides landslides.
They said that one-way traffic from Srinagar to Jammu will be allowed to ply today once the road clearance work will end.
The 40-day-long harsh winter period, ‘Chillai Kalan’ ended in the Valley while as the local Meteorological department (MeT) predicted more snow across the Valley till Jan 31 evening.
The 40-day-long harsh winter period, Chillai Kalan began on December 21, 2018. It is followed by a 20-day long Chillai-Khurd (small cold) and a 10-day long Chilli-Bachha (baby cold).
The local MeT department forecasted light to moderate snowfall from today evening while as moderate snowfall in the higher reaches till Jan 31 evening.“There is possibility of snowfall across the Valley till Jan 31 evening while as another Western Disturbance (WD) will affect Kashmir from February 04,” the MeT officials said.
Deputy Director MeT, Mukhtar Ahmad said that the plains received light snowfall since this morning while as higher reaches received moderate snowfall.
He added that wet spell would continue till Friday afternoon following which there is forecast of improvement in weather conditions.
The minimum temperature in Srinagar on Tuesday night settled at minus 0.3 degree Celsius – four degrees up from the previous night, the official said.
Drass, the second coldest inhabited place in the world, saw the mercury rise by more than 12 degrees from minus 30.4 degrees Celsius to settle at minus 18.0 degrees Celsius.
In Leh district, the mercury settled at a low of minus 7.8 degrees Celsius compared to previous night’s minus 17.4 degrees Celsius, he said.
The MeT said Qazigund – the gateway town to the Valley – in south Kashmir recorded a low of minus 2 degrees Celsius, while nearby Kokernag town registered a low of minus 3.4 degrees Celsius Tuesday night.
The mercury in Kupwara town in north Kashmir settled at minus 2.2 degrees Celsius compared to Tuesday night’s low of minus 7.8 degrees Celsius.
Gulmarg ski-resort in north Kashmir recorded a low of minus 7.5 degrees Celsius Tuesday night, rising significantly from the previous night’s minus 12.2 degrees Celsius, while Pahalgam tourist resort, in South Kashmir, recorded a low of minus 3.3 degrees Celsius—10—degree rise over previous night, the official said.
