Weather better in Kashmir, highway opens

After three days of intermittent snowfall, weather improved in Kashmir valley with Met department predicting dry weather in coming days. 

With improvement in weather, the 294-km long Jammu-Srinagar National Highway reopened for vehicular traffic after three days of closure, officials said. More than 1,000 stranded vehicles were cleared off the highway and allowed to move to Jammu from Srinagar side. 

However, authorities have issued snow avalanche and landslide threat in upper reaches of the Valley and especially on the Srinagar-Jammu highway. An official spokesman said high danger avalanche warnings were issued for avalanche-prone areas in Bandipora district.

There is also medium danger avalanche threat in Baramulla, Kupwara, Uri, in north Kashmir, Anantnag, Kulgam, Pulwama in south Kashmir and Ganderbal in central Kashmir and Kargil in Ladakh region following heavy snowfall recently, he said. Meanwhile, an official of Met Department said minimum temperature in Srinagar registered an increase of 0.6 degrees as the mercury settled at a low of 1.2 degrees Celsius.

Famous ski resort of Gulmarg in north Kashmir recorded minimum temperature of minus 9.4 degrees Celsius, over four degrees down from minus 5.2 degrees previous night, he said.

 The mercury in Pahalgam tourist resort of south Kashmir settled at a low of minus 10.6 degrees Celsius a drop of nearly 10 degrees from minus 0.8 degrees Celsius the previous night. 

Kargil in Ladakh region continued to be the coldest recorded place in the state with minimum temperature of minus 15.6 degrees Celsius while neighbouring Leh recorded a low of minus 10.8 degrees, the official said

Meanwhile, cold weather conditions saw a revival in Rajasthan with mercury dipping by five to seven degree Celsius in most parts of the state. Mount Abu remained the coldest place in the state with the minimum temperature of 4 degrees on Tuesday night, Churu shivered at 5.7 degrees Celsius, which was six degrees lower than the previous night.

“The impact of western disturbances and upper air cyclonic system has gone weak, so cold weather conditions have revived in the state,” said an official of Met department. Meanwhile fog continues to interrupt the rail and road service in Rajasthan.