Pangs of snowfall in Kashmir
A heavy spell of snow brought an end to prolonged dry spell in plains of Kashmir. The sight of each flake of snow dancing down from the sky brought smiles to people, however their joy was short-lived! Snowfall brought life to a standstill in Kashmir as essential services were disrupted.
Amid snowfall, there was a lukewarm response from authorities to clear roads and footpaths. With snow-covered roads, commuters faced a tough time navigating slippery roads.
There were several accidents as cars skidded off the roads. Snow was not cleared on most of the roads in J&K’s summer capital Srinagar. Situation in rural areas was the worst.
As Srinagar city is getting a makeover into a Smart City with generous funding by Government of India, response to natural phenomena like snowfall has to be prompt. Imagine JCB machines, which are used for excavation of soil, being pressed into service for snow clearance at Srinagar’s commercial hub Lal Chowk! The hi-tech snow clearance machines were nowhere visible as snow draped Kashmir. Even snow was not cleared on most of the footpaths especially in Srinagar posing serious risk to pedestrians as they had to walk on roads.
Despite the forecast of snowfall, no mock drill or meeting was conducted to effectively conduct snow clearance and maintain essential services. Accumulation of snow on major roads and flyovers caused massive traffic jams. Authorities could not deal with 8 to 12 inches of snowfall and were caught off-guard. With more snowfall forecast in the first week of January, it is going to be a challenging task for people.
Owing to its unique topography, J&K is a multi-hazard region prone to natural disasters like earthquakes, floods, landslides, avalanches, high velocity winds, and snowstorms. Most parts of the region fall under the high seismic Zones IV and V making it highly vulnerable to earthquakes. For the last several years, J&K has been witnessing erratic weather patterns. From dry and warm winters to drought and flood-like situations, the union territory is facing the brunt of climate change and vandalisation of forests, water bodies and wetlands.
As per weather experts, Kashmir will witness harsh winter this season. And the prediction came true as Kashmir reeled under freezing temperatures and Srinagar shivered with minus 8.5 degree Celsius on December 20—the third-coldest since 1891. Srinagar’s all-time low for December is minus 12.8 degrees Celsius, recorded on December 13, 1934.
The situation took a dangerous turn with freezing of drinking water pipes and erratic power supply. Taking serious note of the situation, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah cancelled all his engagements in Jammu and decided to stay in Srinagar to oversee the functioning of the power department and other essential services.
“In light of the severe cold spell in the Kashmir valley & the resultant difficulties with water & electricity supply, I have decided to cancel my forthcoming programmes in Jammu & station myself in Srinagar for the next week to personally monitor the functioning of the Power department & other important departments,” the chief minister said in a post on X.
Omar chaired a high-level meeting at the civil secretariat in Srinagar and directed for providing seamless services during winter and ensuring connectivity besides providing relief and essential supplies to the people.
Officers told the CM that a sufficient number of hi-tech snow clearance machines have been deployed by the R&B Department, SMC, MED, BRO, and NHAI, with additional machines on standby to handle heavy snowfall.
The CM emphasised the need for a robust mechanism to minimise public inconvenience during severe weather conditions. He instructed the concerned authorities to focus on clearing key routes, including inter-district highways and roads leading to hospitals, power grids, water supply systems, and fire and emergency services.
It is praiseworthy that the CM showed seriousness and passed required directions but the problem is with implementation. There has to be a proactive approach by officers on the ground to deal with winter vagaries.
Proper planning is needed to deal with snowfall, rains or floods. Concerned Deputy Commissioners have an important part to play to ensure timely and effective responses to deal with weather-related challenges in their respective districts.
The problem is we don’t learn lessons from disasters. We act only after the disasters. Its glaring example is the devastating floods of 2014. J&K needs effective disaster management mechanisms from village to colony levels. Though we have beautifully composed comprehensive disaster management plans, the question is about its proper implementation on the ground. This can only happen when there is coordination between different departments, roles of each officer are defined and importantly accountability is fixed to complete tasks.
Where there is a will, there is a way! Despite limited resources, our ancestors effectively braved challenges and dealt with severe winter vagaries. We have resources, machines and technology but no will!
Author is Executive Editor, Greater Kashmir
