14 of 28 flights cancelled at Srinagar airport; traffic from Jammu towards Srinagar today but advisory to avoid journey

Srinagar: Kashmir valley received light snowfall on Wednesday but it affected several flights at Srinagar airport. Interestingly, south Kashmir areas received less snowfall than other parts of Kashmir valley.
The weather office predicted that the wet spell will end by Thursday and the weather will stay clear till Feb 8, Monday.
The snowfall in most parts of the valley including in Srinagar started during the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday, and after a break from morning till Wednesday forenoon, resumed again across the valley.
According to weather officials, till Wednesday evening, Srinagar recorded about one inch of fresh snowfall while Qazigund recorded about 1.5 inches of snowfall.
The ski-resort Gulmarg recorded three inches of snowfall. Pahalgam recorded less snowfall, of about 0.5 inches, while Kokernag and Kupwara recorded 1.3 inches and 4.4 inches of fresh snowfall, respectively.
Many flights were cancelled at Srinagar Airport due to the snowfall. Officials said that fourteen flights were cancelled while a few flights faced delays due to low visibility issues.
“Out of the total 28 flights, 14 flights were cancelled due to the snowfall. It snowed continuously in the afternoon, making the runway slippery, which resulted in the cancellation of flights. However, 14 flights operated normally at the airport till 1 PM after facing delays due to visibility issues,” Santosh Dhoke, Director of Srinagar Airport, told Kashmir Reader.
He added that on Thursday the operation of flights will remain subject to weather conditions.
Due to the continuous snowfall during the day, huge inconvenience was faced by people after the roads were left slippery due to the fresh layer of snowfall that made it problematic for vehicles to move. Though snow-clearance work was going on across Srinagar city and elsewhere in the valley, the constant snowfall continued to play spoilsport.
However, the snowfall came as some respite from the freezing temperatures. The minimum temperatures increased across Kashmir valley with Srinagar city recording a low of minus 0.4 degree Celsius, up from minus 4.6 on the previous night. Qazigund, as per weather officials, recorded minus 2.8 degree Celsius, against minus 4.5 degree Celsius a night before.
Pahalgam recorded minus 3.9 degree Celsius against minus 9.3 degree Celsius on the previous night, while Konernag recorded minus 4.5 degree Celsius against minus 8.4 degree Celsius on the earlier night.
Gulmarg recorded minus 5.2 degree Celsius, up from minus 7.0 degree Celsius on the previous night. Kupwara in north Kashmir recorded minus 1.2 degree Celsius, marginally up from minus 1.6 on the earlier night.
Weather officials said that there will be end to the wet spell from Thursday, after which the weather will remain dry across Kashmir valley till 8th of February, Monday.
“The weather will improve tomorrow and will bring end to the wet spell. There can be very light snowfall at scattered places but chances are low. Largely it will remain cloudy without any precipitation. The weather from tomorrow will remain dry till 8th February, Monday,” Dr Mukhtar Ahmad, Deputy Director of the Meteorological Department in J&K, told Kashmir Reader.
Meanwhile, traffic on the Srinagar-Jammu National highway will ply from Jammu towards Srinagar on Thursday. The traffic department said that subject to fair weather and road conditions, only one-way traffic will be allowed from Jammu towards Srinagar including the local traffic plying in Ramban and Banihal, which comes on the middle of the highway, while advising people to avoid journey on the highway as chances of blockade were high due to the prediction of inclement weather.
No vehicle shall be allowed in the opposite direction including ones carrying livestock and perishable commodities, the traffic department said, underlining that the weight bearing capacity of the installed Bailey bridge is less than 40 metric tonnes.
Light Motor Vehicles (LMVs) shall be allowed from 8 AM in the morning till 1 PM in the afternoon from Nagrota in Jammu towards Kashmir and subsequently from Jakheni in Udhampur from 10 AM to 12 PM. Heavy Motor Vehicles (HMVs) shall be allowed from Jakheni in Udhampur towards Jammu after the clearance of LMVs.

Reader correspondent