After 9 years, Srinagar gets November snowfall
CHILL PILL Season’s first snow results in traffic jams, power supply snapped, flights cancelled, weatherman predicts clear skies from Monday onwards
Kashmir’s summer capital Srinagar received season’s first snowfall on Saturday, signifying an early onset of winter.
Though it has been snowing in the mountains since Thursday, this is after nine years that the city draped in white in November.
Director, weather department, Sonam Lotus said, since 2000, Srinagar witnessed snowfall in November in 2004, 2008 and 2009.
Social media was awash with the pictures and videos of snowcovered roofs, fields and bowing trees laden with red apples. The crimson Chinar trees draped in snow appeared mesmerising.
The snowfall that started in the afternoon led to breakdown of electric supply and cancellation of flights.
Due to slippery roads, the city also witnessed traffic jams in some parts, while commuters in other parts complained of less public transport.
The snowfall and rains in plains since Thursday has broken the routine of late precipitation in winters in the Kashmir valley for the past three years.
The picturesque hill resorts of Gulmarg and Pahalgam accumulated around 31cm and 18cm of snow, respectively while Srinagar got 4cm snow till 5:30pm and it is still continuing. The snowfall was also reported in the mountainous desert region of Ladakh.
“It is not relenting. We expect this to reduce from tomorrow while the skies may clear up from Monday,” said Lotus, adding that there is likelihood of dry weather for next two-three weeks.
The day temperatures in Srinagar plummeted to 6.3 °C from the normal 20°C.
The Mughal Road in south Kashmir and Zojila-Leh Road in north-eastern Kashmir, which were closed on Thursday continued to be such due to bad weather and slippery conditions. The Srinagar-Jammu highway, which was closed for a few hours in the morning due to landslides was opened for the traffic from Srinagar to Jammu.
As against monsoon in rest of the country, Kashmir mostly owes its precipitation to winds blowing from the Mediterranean Sea that is locally called ‘western disturbance’.
There are fears that the early snow this year may damage the fruits on trees.
Former chief minister and NC leader Omar Abdullah tweeted, “The snow in the Valley looks beautiful as it heralds the arrival of winter but spare a thought for the horticulturalists. Part of the apple crop is still on the trees, a large part is on the ground waiting sorting and packing and the trees still have leaves. #untimelysnow.
Owing to dry winter last year, the irrigation and flood control department had advised farmers in north Kashmir not to sow water-intensive paddy and instead asked them to sow pulses and other cash crops, which use less water.
Experts say that Kashmir has been witnessing a constant decrease in the amount of snowfall over the years and a corresponding increase in rains.
The phenomenon has been attributed to changing climate across the globe. Some researchers have suggested that Kashmir may get 30%-70% less snowfall by the end of this century.
120 RESCUED AS HEAVY SNOWFALL BLOCKS ROAD IN VALLEY
Over 120 persons, mostly truckers, were rescued from Peer Ki Gali along the Mughal road, which recorded the season’s first heavy snowfall over the past couple of days, a senior traffic police officer said on Saturday.Some of the rescued people, including an aged woman, were sick and shifted to hospital, but none of them are serious, deputy superintendent of police, traffic, Mohammad Rafiq said.