Incessant rains, gusty winds disrupt normal life in Srinagar

Srinagar, Apr 16: Incessant rains and gusty winds disrupted normal life in the summer capital on Wednesday.

Amid heavy rains, commuters were seen rushing to their respective destinations, causing massive traffic jams. Many commuters blamed a lack of traffic management during peak hours for gridlock.

"Today, there was a major traffic jam in the city. Be it Downtown or the city centre areas, there is bumper-to-bumper traffic and people are stuck for a long time in jams,” said Nadeem Ahmad, a commuter.

The commuters riding two-wheelers were seen rushing to their destinations. They said that traffic jams were too much to navigate even for two-wheelers. “Amid the rains, we had covered ourselves with polythene. Many riders have kids along, and this traffic jam is not making it easier,” said a commuter.

The commuters said that potholes and open manholes at many places in the city added to their woes amid heavy rainfall. The commuters and pedestrians said that the movement of vehicles was also disrupted, and these issues pose a serious threat of accidents.

“These potholes turn into cesspools amid rains, further adding to our problems. There is also an open manhole issue, which makes navigating through Srinagar risky for commuters as well as for pedestrians,” said another commuter.

Many vendors in Srinagar closed their stalls amid rains and gusty winds across the Boulevard and other tourist places in Srinagar.