Kashmir valley received a fresh spell of snowfall on Saturday which ended around the afternoon while the weather department forecast suggested a respite in precipitation for nearly the next two weeks.
The fresh snowfall of varying intensity fell early morning and disrupted the surface and aerial traffic between the region and the rest of the country.
According to officials, Srinagar received two to three inches of snow during the morning hours while Kulgam in south Kashmir received three to five inches.
During the past week, Srinagar district received 64.7 centimeters of snowfall.
The south Kashmir districts recorded the heavier volume of snow during the past with some areas recording five to six feet of snowfall.
The Meteorological department said the weather is now expected to remain dry till 20 January.
Amid the heavy snowfall, the problems faced by the locals continued to mount as the main roads were covered with a slippery layer of frost and snow, causing the traffic to slow down.
The Additional District Commissioner (ADC) Srinagar, Hanief Balkhi, said that all the main roads leading to the hospitals are cleared by the Mechanical Engineering Department (MED) and the R&B Department. The lanes and the bylanes, however, he said come under the SMC.
“This week, we made sure that all the main roads were cleared and fit in case of medical emergencies. But yes, (with regards) the lanes and bylanes we got complaints from people which is true as there has been a problem in coordination,” Balkhi said.
As the locals blamed the authorities for negligence and slow paced work during the tough times, a local news publication, Kashmir News Service (KNS), reported that few pregnant women, who had to be hospitalized, were transported by the locals using makeshift stretchers.
