Srinagar: Traffic remained suspended to dozens of far-flung and remote villages, including border towns of Karnah, Tanghdar, Machil and Gurez, for the second successive day on Sunday in north Kashmir due slippery road conditions following fresh snowfall.
However, vehicles were plying normally on Kupwara-Keran road.
“Dozens of far-flung and remote villages, including Machil, Kernah and Tanghdar, remained cut off from rest of the valley due to slippery road conditions following fresh snowfall on Saturday,” an official of Police Control Room (PCR), Kupwara, told UNI over the phone.
He said Sadhna top and Z gali received about 3 inches to a foot of fresh snowfall on Saturday. “Traffic to these areas will be restored only after clearing snow from the roads and getting a green signal from the officials deployed on the ground,” he said.
He said traffic was through on Kupwara-Keran road though the vehicles are currently plying only till Munden, which is a few km from the main town.
An official of Police Control Room (PCR) from Bandipora told UNI that traffic remained suspended to the border town of Gurez and adjoining areas due to fresh snowfall and incessant rain. “Razdan pass and adjoining areas on Bandipora-Gurez road recovered about 7 to 8 inches of fresh snowfall on Saturday,” he said.
He said snow clearance operation will be started on the road only after improvement in the weather conditions as the areas in avalanche prone.
Gurez, which is surrounded from Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir (PoK) from three sides, and other adjoining villages, including those near the Line of Control (LoC), were on April 10 reconnected with district headquarters Bandipora in north Kashmir after remaining cutoff for over four months due to the accumulation of snow, avalanches and slippery conditions.
The authorities provide helicopter services to ferry patients and other stranded people, including students, from Gurez during these winter months. As many as 150 aspirants appearing in Jammu and Kashmir Services Selection Board (JKSSB) examination were airlifted to Bandipora from Gurez by District Administration Bandipora last month. Similarly, many patients were airlifted from Gurez to Bandipora for medical treatment.
However, the people of Gurez and adjoining border villages have been demanding a tunnel near the Razdan pass so that the border area remains connected with the rest of the valley throughout the year.
