Only Srinagar-bound traffic from Jammu on highway today

SRINAGAR: Rain fell across Kashmir valley on Monday, bringing down day as well as night temperatures and providing welcome relief from the sizzling heat of the last one week.
Deputy Director of the Met centre in Srinagar, Mukhtar Ahmad, told Kashmir Reader that there is a chance of heavy rain at isolated places in the valley in the next two days, up to July 14.
“However, the weather will remain dry from 15th to 19th July. The day as well night temperatures will remain normal up to 14th July,” he said.
Ahmad said that Srinagar’s maximum day temperature on Monday was recorded at 25 degrees Celsius and the minimum temperature in the pre-dawn hours was recorded at 18.4 degrees Celsius.
In the past one week, the maximum day temperature in Srinagar had been around 34 degrees Celsius.
“The highest day temperature in Kashmir valley on Monday was recorded at 28.7 degrees Celsius at Kupwara, and the lowest temperature was recorded at Pahalgam at 19.8 degrees,” Ahmad said.
Meanwhile, the Traffic Control Room Srinagar said that only one-way traffic movement will be allowed on the Srinagar-Jammu national highway on Tuesday, from Jammu towards Srinagar.
Meanwhile, reports about flash floods due to cloudburst were received in Watlar area of Ganderbal district and Kathua.
Reports said water seeped into many houses while orchards suffered damage in Ganderbal.
“Disaster Management Team along with all line departments pressed men and machinery into the service on the spot and started restoration of affected services viz-a-viz dewatering from few houses through water pumps, clearance of road and pathways by removing debris, boulders and slit that had accumulated besides plugging of irrigation canals has also been started,” officials said.
They said assessment was conducted to ascertain severity of damage and it was found that “no house is completely damaged and no family has got displaced.”
They said the revenue field agency under the supervision of Tehsildar Lar has surveyed the damage cases of houses, paddy fields, horticulture and poultry for processing relief cases and found that “no requirement of immediate relief in the form of ration and household items is required to anyone.”
“Pertinently, no loss of human life and livestock was reported due to cloud bursting,” the officials added.
Meanwhile, at least people were rescued after flash floods in Kathua district amid heavy rains, officials said.
They said the eleven people belonging to the nomadic community were stuck in flash floods in Ujh river in the Rajbagh area and were rescued by police and SDRF personnel. Several farm animals were, however, washed away, the officials said. The district administration in Kathua and Samba have also sounded a flood alert.

ARIF RASHID