Srinagar: The higher reaches of Kashmir continued to receive snowfall for the second consecutive day while rains lashed plains, officials said on Wednesday.
The upper reaches of the Valley, including Keran and Machil, in the Kupwara district, Gurez, in the Bandipora district, and Sonamarg in the Ganderbal district, received light snowfall, they said, adding that there are reports of snowfall in some other areas at the higher reaches of Jammu and Kashmir.
Snowfall also continued on the Zojila Pass along the Srinagar-Leh national highway for the second day.
The plain areas, including Srinagar city, were lashed by overnight rains, bringing down the temperature, they said. Rains continued intermittently during the day as well.
The Meteorological (MeT) office has said intermittent light to moderate rain at most places of Kashmir and scattered places of Jammu would continue till the evening, after which there would be a significant decrease in rainfall activity.
The higher reaches are likely to experience a good amount of snowfall, it said.
There is a forecast of intermittent light to moderate rain at scattered places from Thursday till Saturday.
The weather is likely to stay mainly dry after that till April 25.
Meanwhile, incessant rainfall over the past two days in Kashmir has dampened the festive spirit of shoppers ahead of the Eid.
Eid-ul-Fitr, marking the culmination of the fasting month of Ramzan, is expected to be celebrated on Friday or Saturday, depending on the sighting of the crescent moon.
“Preparations for Eid are underway but rain has hampered and disturbed the fervour. There is no rush in the market compared to last year,” Nisar Hussain, a customer, said.
He also blamed the rampant construction work going on in the city for fewer people coming out to shop.
“If you see, due to smart city construction work also people don’t have a passage to walk. So, this also has adversely affected the Eid shopping,” Hussain said.
Imtiaz Ahmad Bhat, a shop owner, echoed similar views.
“This year we don’t see any crowds of Eid shoppers. First smart city works and now rain has impacted the Eid shopping,” Bhat said.
He said usually the shopkeepers would be busy attending hordes of customers ahead of Eid.
“Usually we don’t have time for a breather but this year we are sitting idle. Compared to last year, this year it’s not even 50 percent (business),” he added.
Shabir Ahmad bhat, another shop owner, said he was hopeful of better weather over the next few days.
Farah Zainab, a shopper, said due to rain, her shopping was somehow hampered.
“We used to do a lot of shopping during Eid – utensils, clothes or jewellery. But due to the inclement weather, we think twice whether to venture out or not. There are traffic jams everywhere due to rain and construction work in the city,” she said.
