SRINAGAR: The Meteorological Department (MeT) said on Saturday morning that snowfall and rain activity in Jammu and Kashmir will decrease from today evening and significant improvement will be observed from Sunday. The orange alert forecast is in place, though, in view of the inclement weather.
The MeT further said that current weather forecast is valid for the next 12 hours.
The impact of bad weather can be felt on surface and air transport and there is also a possibility of avalanche or landslides in vulnerable areas.
The Jammu-Srinagar national highway remained closed for vehicular movement for the third day due to continuous rains and snowfall and shooting stones at various places, news agency ANI reported.
Meanwhile, fresh snowfall was reported at Mata Vaishno Devi shrine on Saturday morning. The yatra (pilgrimage) is continuing but battery car and helicopter services remain suspended.
Srinagar Airport said that flights were delayed due to low visibility triggered by rain and snowfall in Jammu and Kashmir.
“The continued snowfall has reduced the visibility at our airport. The snowfall is likely to continue till 11 am. All operations shall be delayed. Kindly bear with us,” it said on Twitter.
The entire Jammu and Kashmir region has been receiving moderate snowfall for the past few days. The highest snowfall was recorded in Gulmarg (43.4 mm) and Batote (44 mm) early on Wednesday.
The Jammu AP division recorded 88.6 mm rainfall and Kathua 80 mm.
The MeT has asked people in the Valley not to venture in avalanche prone areas as its data revealed that the disaster is mostly triggered by heavy snowfall. People have also been advised to follow traffic advisory and maintain proper ventilation inside their rooms.
