Heavy snow, fog cut off Kashmir, Ladakh
Inclement weather has added to woes due to shut down after abrogation of Article 370.
More than 40 units of paramilitary forces have been airlifted from Kashmir to the Northeastern states, on instructions of the Union Ministry of Home Affairs. This follows the outbreak of violent protests since Parliament passed the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) on Wednesday, thus becoming the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).
Dozens of troops have been put on standby and the Centre has reportedly asked authorities to deploy Jammu and Kashmir Armed Police (JKAP) for maintenance of law and order in Kashmir. Official sources confirmed to The Sunday Guardian that personnel from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Border Security Force (BSF) and Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) have been disengaged from Kashmir to the Northeast and many columns have been put on standby.
“We have already started this process and more units will be dispatched from Kashmir in the coming days. If the weather remains unfavourable, they would be airlifted from here to their next destination,” a senior police officer said on Friday. The Union Ministry of Home Affairs is closely monitoring the situation in Assam, Meghalaya and Tripura after the passing of the CAB in both Houses of Parliament.
The situation in Kashmir has been peaceful to a large extent after the abrogation of Article 370. While post-paid mobile services were restored recently, the ban on internet services and pre-paid mobiles continues. Authorities here are not allowing any public gathering, even on the shrines of Hazratbal and Khanyar. There is a blanket ban on Friday prayers in the main mosque of Jamia Masjid in Srinagar and all other major mosques.
Authorities have announced the closure of the Srinagarladakh highway for the winter after Kashmir witnessed its second heavy snowfall of this season. Earlier, as dense fog set in Kashmir for the past one week, the Airports Authority of India had to cancel all flights to and from Kashmir.
The government has informed the media that the road connecting the Union
Territory of Ladakh region with Kashmir has been closed and trucks would be allowed to proceed to Srinagar only when the weather permits. The meteorological department has said that the Zojila Pass, Zero Point and Mena Marg witnessed heavy snowfall and this affected the health resort in Sonmarg. Local authorities of Ganderbal district told the media that Sonmarg is currently under snow and it would be out of bounds for all during the winter months.
According to traffic officials, the Srinagar-jammu highway will remain shut for a few days as in many places, the road has got damaged.
Meanwhile, the partial shutdown of Kashmir following the abrogation of Article 370 continued to disrupt lives. The inclement weather has added to the worries of the people in Kashmir. With sub-zero temperatures in the valley, there has been a lot of protests against the Power Development Department over power outages.