Snow blankets south Kashmir

Shopian, Feb 1: The residents across south Kashmir on Thursday woke up to a thick blanket of snow.

All four districts of south Kashmir - Shopian, Anantnag, Kulgam and Pulwama - experienced a snowfall since late on Wednesday night, ending a long dry spell.

The low-lying areas of Shopian witnessed around 6 to 7 inches of snow while the upper reaches like Heerpora, Sedow, Devpora, and Kellar areas received up to 1 foot of snow.

Peer Ki Gali along the historic Mughal Road remained buried under two feet of fresh snowfall.

The mountain pass had earlier also received brief spells of snow, having made it one of the tourist attractions amidst snowless winters during the Chillai Kalan, the harshest leg of winter.

Executive Officer of Municipal Council Shopian (MCS), Malik Suhail told Greater Kashmir that all the thoroughfares and streets in the town were immediately motorable.

“We have also cleared all the lanes and now we are clearing the by-lanes and alleyways,” he said.
Tariq Ahmad, a resident, said that the snow brought cheers to the apple farmers.

“It is the first time I have seen people waiting for snow so desperately,” he said.
In neighbouring Pulwama district, the authorities cleared all the roads and ensured seamless power and water supply.
While low-lying areas of the district were carpeted with a thin film of snow that vanished in hours, the upper reaches like Abhama and Sangrwani received around 5 to 6 inches of snow.

Abdul Rashid from Sangarwani said that the area did not receive a good snowfall this year.

“This village usually experiences snowfall up to 4 to 6 feet, but this year we witnessed scant snow and we have witnessed such a winter for the first time over the
last many years,” he said. Deputy Commissioner (DC) Pulwama, Basharat Qayoom undertook a tour of the district to take stock of various services.

He visited District Hospital Pulwama and Community Health Centre (CHC) Rajpora to ensure the seamless supply of medical facilities to the people.
Similarly, DC Kulgam Athar Aamir Khan also visited many areas in the district and took stock of essential supplies.

Talking to reporters, he said that the low-lying areas received around 6 to 8 inches of snow while the hilly areas experienced 1 foot to 1-and-a-half feet of snow.

“We have restored electricity and water supply in most of the areas, Khan said.
He said that the snow had also been cleared from the roads in far-off areas of Damhal Hajnjipora, Kund, and Aharbal.

In Anantnag, Executive Engineer Mechanical Division, Javed Ahmad said that 80 percent of the Priority-1 roads had been cleared while the snow clearance was going on the Priority-2 roads. He said that the roads in some villages like Matnard, Lisser, Inderwan, and Kachwan were cleared.

Tehsildar Larnoo, Syed Muiz Qadri said that the upper reaches of the Kokernag area recorded around 2 feet of snow.

He said that the snow had been cleared from all the main roads.

“We are now clearing the link roads,” he said.