Srinagar: Kashmir Valley again got connected with the rest of the country as vehicular and air traffic were restored on Wednesday following a day-long suspension triggered by heavy snowfall, though the railways had kept the connection intact.
However, the officials have urged caution and advised travellers to check for updates before heading out.
Traffic on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway was fully restored on Wednesday, a day after being closed for vehicular movement in view of heavy snowfall, officials said.
They said heavy motor vehicles, including trucks, were allowed to ply as the highway has been restored fully, and traffic has been allowed to ply on both directions.
Earlier in the day, only light motor vehicles were allowed to ply on the road.
According to the officials, National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) personnel sprinkled salt and urea to get rid of frosty conditions on the road and ensure safe driving.
Most parts of Kashmir received snowfall on Tuesday, which led to the suspension of traffic on the highway and flight operations at the Srinagar airport.
Fresh snowfall across Kashmir on Tuesday led to the closure of the Jammu-Srinagar national highway and the cancellation of all flights at Srinagar airport, leaving hundreds of tourists stranded in the valley.
Flight operations also resumed at the airport on Wednesday morning.
Meanwhile, the night temperature plunged several degrees below the freezing point at most places in Kashmir on Tuesday. Srinagar, however, recorded warmer-than-expected night temperature — 0.1 degrees Celsius — a notch above the season’s normal.
Srinagar city and Baramulla town (at 0.4 degrees Celsius) were the only places in Kashmir where the night temperature settled above the freezing point.
Gulmarg in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district and Sonamarg in central Kashmir’s Ganderbal district were the coldest places in the valley, both recording a low of minus 9.8 degrees Celsius.
The Pahalgam in south Kashmir, which also serves as one of the base camps for the annual Amarnath Yatra, recorded a low of minus 6.4 degrees Celsius.
The minimum temperature in Qazigund, the gateway town of the valley, settled at minus 4.3 degrees, while Kokernag recorded a low of minus 2.6 degrees and Kupwara minus 0.7 degrees Celsius.
The snowfall had disrupted surface and air links across the Valley on Tuesday, stranding passengers and affecting supply chains. While clear skies returned on Wednesday morning, the Meteorological Department has forecast isolated wet weather over the next 24 hours in some parts of the region.
