Flood Panic Reigns, Srinagar On Edge

SRINAGAR: Seven months after witnessing the devastating floods, Kashmir valley was again on the edge as several areas were in deluge leading to death of at least seven people, including a child, and fears over the fate of 10 others. 

Fearing repeat of September floods, thousands were seen relocating to safer areas from the flood prone localities as rain-fed streams rushed down the mountains, swelling Jhelum and flooding many parts of South and central Kashmir, including Srinagar. 

A landslide in Chadoora, Budgam district buried two houses, trapping 16 people from two families under the debris. While six bodies were found by evening, all others are feared killed, officials said.

The dead included four women, a man and a 22-day-old baby. A vehicle carrying cattle on way to Udhampur from Doda was caught in flash floods in Jammu.  A young man was washed away.

Due to heavy rains over the past 36 hours, Jhelum was flowing above the danger mark at several places including Sangam in Anantnag district and Ram Munshi Bagh in the city. 

The water level was 22.8 feet at Sangam, at 19 feet at Ram Munshi Bagh and at 11.55 feet at Asham in Bandipore. Danger level at Sangam is 21 feet and at Ram Munshi Bagh it is 18 feet. (Late on Monday officials said Jhelum in Srinagar was showing a declining or static trend.)

People living along the banks of Jhelum were told to move to safer places. At Hamdania Colony in Bemina quarter in the city outskirts, water from the flood spill channel breached the embankment and entered large number of houses forcing people to shift to safer places.

Residents in flood-prone areas of city’s Rajbagh, Jawahar Nagar, Gogji Bagh and Wazir Bagh were seen shifting to safer places. The process began on Sunday evening as rumours on social media spread like wildfire that breaches on Jhelum embankments were imminent.

A worried Chief Minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed flew to Srinagar from New Delhi and visited the water-logged city centre Lal Chowk and interacted with traders and common people.

Many shopkeepers along the Residency Road and Lal Chowk commercial hub had moved their merchandise to safer places a day early. 

Already Kashmir University and State Board have postponed all examinations till April 3 and schools have been shut.

Inter-district connectivity has been severely affected as roads have been submerged at various places. 

Jammu-Srinagar highway was submerged at Barsu near Pampore disrupting traffic.

Officials said they were ready to face any eventuality. “The central government was in constant touch with Jammu and Kashmir and monitoring the flood situation”, they said. 

Home Minister Rajnath Singh spoke to Chief Minister Sayeed. Union Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi visited the Kashmir Valley and promised government assistance to people to tide over the crisis. Two teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have been deputed and four other teams are on stand-by.

Process to evacuate affected people was undertaken as eight teams of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) were rushed to Kashmir. Armed forces, along with four helicopters, were also placed in readiness for deployment at short notice. 

Police said, more than 200 structures including 176 houses have developed cracks due to land sinking in Shopian district of south Kashmir, officials said.

Over 280 people had died and tens of thousands left homeless and property worth hundreds of crores damaged in unprecedented floods in the state in September last year. 

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