Fresh snowfall hits Indian-controlled Kashmir

The upper reaches and plains of Indian-controlled Kashmir Thursday received a fresh snowfall disrupting life, according to officials. The snowfall began Wednesday evening and immediately accumulated on roads hampering movement of vehicular traffic. However, officials said snow clearing machines were pressed into service early Thursday to clear roads. The snowfall affected the rail and road traffic. The accumulation of snow at Jawahar tunnel led to the closure of the 294 km Srinagar-Jammu highway. The Srinagar-Jammu road link connects Muslim majority areas of the region to winter capital -- Jammu and Indian states. The Baramulla-Banihal rail service was also suspended in wake of accumulation of snow on tracks. Hundreds of people boarding the trains daily were restricted to their places. Traffic department officials Thursday said road will remain closed in wake of heavy snowfall at Banihal and Patnitop. The officials said the road has been closed for safety of passengers. It has asked commuters intending to travel on the road on Friday to first ascertain the status of road from the traffic police control units set up at different places. The snowfall affected electricity in rural areas however in towns and Srinagar city the supply remained unaffected. At present the region is in the grip of harshest 40-day period of winter, locally called Chilla-i-Kalan. During this period from Dec. 21 to Jan. 31 the region mostly the valley remains under extreme cold due to below-freezing night temperatures. The snowfall is likely to trigger avalanches in upper reaches and areas close to the line-of-control (LoC), dividing Kashmir into India and Pakistan controlled parts. Authorities have cautioned people living in these areas to avoid venturing in avalanche prone zones. According to India's official broadcaster -- All India Radio ( AIR) Fresh snowfall in Ladakh division of region has further intensified the cold wave conditions. "Due to the snowfall, all the scheduled flights from Delhi to Leh this morning had to be cancelled," said AIR. "Leh-Nubra road, the surface link to Nubra valley and the Siachen glacier is closed for traffic since last evening due to accumulation of high mass of snowfall. The Meteorological department had predicted snow until Friday evening. Last week snowfall also affected road, rail and air traffic to the region.