Festive fervour sets in Valley ahead of Eid-ul-Azha

 Markets across Kashmir Valley, including summer capital of the state wore a festive look as Muslims started preparing for Eid-ul-Azha to be celebrated on Saturday.

People in large numbers thronged markets on Thursday to buy sacrificial animals, food items, clothes and gifts. Bakeries, confectioneries, sweet shops, readymade garments and toy shops witnessed a heavy rush of customers, while outlets selling clothes, perfumes and footwear also saw brisk sales.

Roadside vendors selling varied merchandise have set up stalls in Lal Chowk and adjoining areas.

Serpentine queues were witnessed at ATM outlets and banks.
The trade of sacrificial animals, mostly sheep and goats, also saw an upswing during the day.

Besides the special markets set up for the sacrificial animals, shepherds were seen camping with their flock at various places in the heart of the city looking for customers.

Despite a contingency plan announced by the traffic department, frequent traffic jams were witnessed along various routes in the city causing inconvenience to the people.
Traffic department has restricted movement of commercial vehicles along Maulana Azad and Residency roads to ensure smooth movement of people through the city centre Lal Chowk.

As part of its strategy to regulate traffic in and around this city, traffic authorities did not allow commercial vehicles on Residency Road from Radio Kashmir crossing to Hari Singh High Street on one side and along Moulana Azad Road from SRTC Crossing to Jehangir Chowk on the other side except emergency and on-duty vehicles.

The restrictions will remain in force till Friday, a spokesman of the traffic department said.