MeT predicts another spell of rain from April 30

Rains Drench Valley, Capital Inundated

SRINAGAR:Srinagar: Rains lashed Kashmir Valley since Sunday night after days of dry weather even as the minimum temperatures went down at all places across Kashmir Valley while the MeT department predicted improvement in weather till the evening of April 30.   

Almost all places in Kashmir received rains during the Sunday night and Monday resulting in the increase in water level in River Jhelum

A spokesman of the local meteorological department said there would be decrease in precipitation from Tuesday before fresh spell of rains from the evening of April 30 to May 1.   

MeT Director Sonam Lotus said that there will be significant decrease in rainfall from Tuesday morning while the weather will remain mostly dry from Tuesday to Thursday evening. “Light rainfall may occur on Tuesday but from  Wednesday till Thursday evening the weather will remain dry. From Thursday evening, Valley may witness light rainfall that may continue till May 2,” Lotus said adding that there is no need to panic and the rainfall this time will not be heavy .

Lotus added that the minimum temperature in all places in Kashmir division, including Ladakh region, went down since Sunday night.

 A weather official informed that Srinagar city recorded 3.4 mm of rainfall while Pahalgam received the highest rainfall of 13.5 mm and the mercury there settled at 8.4 degrees Celsius, a drop of nearly 9 degrees. 

Rains lashed almost every part of Kashmir while wind storm in North, Central and South Kashmir created panic among people on Sunday night. Reports said that several residential houses and cow-sheds were damaged due to intense windstorm.

 Due to overnight rain, traffic authorities Monday allowed one-way traffic and vehicles were allowed to ply from Srinagar to Jammu.  Pertinently,  from two consecutive days—April 25-26, vehicles were allowed from Jammu to Srinagar to pave way to Durbar Move.

The incessant rains which continued till late Monday evening worsened the scenario as most of the roads in the city were inundated, causing great inconvenience to the common people. 

The drainage failure as usual led to waterlogging and inundation of business hub Lal Chowk, Exhibition Crossing, Hari Singh High Street, Jawahar Nagar, Raj Bagh, Sonawar, TRC Crossing besides scores of areas in the old city including key Sazgaripora- Eidgah Road..

Due to incessant rains, the nallahs and flood channels witnessed a steep rise in water level. 

In Gulab-Sheikh Safapora area on Srinagar-Bandipora road, traffic was disrupted for hours after the road started caving in due to incessant rains.

In South Kashmir’s Baramulla district scores of people took to roads after Nanak Bhawan market was flooded with rain water. The rain waters reportedly entered into several shops prompting traders to stage protest against the government. The protesters demanded dewatering of water from the market. Police and civil administration officials rushed to spot and pacified the protesting traders. 

Waterlogging again chokes Srinagar

Srinagar: A downpour as usual plunged Srinagar city into the worst kind of waterlogging – courtesy the failure of the city’s drainage system.

The successive governments in Jammu and Kashmir instead of repairing the faulty city drainage system always relied on the dewatering pumps as a result people suffer when incessant rains lash the city.

 “Waterlogging in Srinagar especially in Lal Chowk irks people. Using dewatering vehicles and pumps is not a remedy. We need some concrete and permanent measures to get rid of this menace,” a trader said.

An expert termed the  poor drainage system as the failure of urban planning.  “It needs strong political will, resources and long-term planning to rectify the city’s drainage system and reduce the perennial problem of waterlogging,” he said.

Over the years, the people of Srinagar city have been facing the water logging problem. The failure of drainage system when the flood threat was looming over Kashmir in the last week of March resulted in inundation of the Lal Chowk and other adjacent areas. “This failure for a moment made people believe that city has been hit by flood waters. The government has enough time to repair the drainage system, provided it means business,” Nazir Ahmed a resident of Kokar Bazar said.

 Raj Bagh, Jawahar Nagar, Bemina residential areas falling on the left side of the Jhelum river in Srinagar and Residency Raod, Hari Singh High Street, TRC Crossing, Dalgate, Pantha Chowk, Nawa Kadal, Safa Kadal in downtown Srinagar and other areas including Indra Nagar, Shivpora, Batwara Sonawar, Chanapora, Natipora, Zakoora, Soura and Padshahi Bagh, locals are forced to move to safer places after the accumulated rainwater enteres into their houses and shops after every downpour. “These areas are the worst hit and government needs to take an initiative to relieve these people from the waterlogging problem,”

Chief Town Planner with the Srinagar Development Authority (SDA) said that Srinagar city is the product of planning failure and to save this historical city, what is needed is political will and long-term planning based on scientific studies keeping in view the environmental concerns.

 Another expert said that people of Srinagar have been suffering because the planners in past tampered with the environmental and the fragile ecosystem. “The 1971 and 1991 Master Plans were violated to a great extent. Natural waterways were filled to pave way for concrete roads. The wetlands like Bemina and other areas were turned into residential colonies. The one reason why flood threat looms over Bemina everytime it rains is that it in no way was suitable for a residential colony,” he said.

“The defunct drainage system needs to be redesigned taking into account the present and future realities, particularly keeping in view the recent devastating flood waters. Besides, the waterways and basins need to be reclaimed,” he said. (CNS)

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