Jammu and Kashmir floods: Three dead in rain-related incidents; Rajnath Singh assures NN Vohra of all possible help

Jammu and Kashmir authorities sounded a flood alert in central Kashmir on Saturday even as three deaths were reported in rain-related mishaps in the Jammu region. Meanwhile, Union home minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday assured Governor NN Vohra of all possible help from the Centre to deal with the situation.

Srinagar-bound traffic on the Jammu-Srinagar high was suspended on Saturday due to the lurking threat of floods in the Valley, leaving hundreds of commuters stranded, officials said. The Amarnath Yatra was halted again as both Pahalgam and Baltal routes were slippery because of the rain, a spokesperson of the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board said on Saturday.

Intermittent rains since Saturday night led to the flood alert in central Kashmir, but water levels had already started receding in the southern part of the Valley. The authorities on Friday issued a flood alert in south Kashmir. They also put out an alert for low-lying areas in central Kashmir, including the summer capital Srinagar, and asked people to remain prepared for evacuation. Schools across the Valley were closed on Saturday.

Three killed in Jammu

In the Jammu region, three persons were killed and nearly a dozen houses damaged in rain-related mishaps since Friday, officials said.

Harbans Lal (45) was washed away by a flash flood in a stream near his house in Natulphal village in Akhnoor sector. Anzar Ahmad, 22, died after being washed away in the Surankote area of Poonch district on Friday.

A woman named Jameel was killed when a tree fell on her shelter in Kishtwar district.

On the Sringar-Jammu highway, Srinagar-bound vehicles were stopped at various places between Ramban and Banihal around 2 pm as a precautionary measure, officials said. The local administration is making arrangements to lodge passengers for the night at government buildings, including schools. The Jammu-bound traffic was, however, allowed to proceed.

NN Vohra reviews flood situation

Vohra on Saturday undertook an extended tour of the summer capital Srinagar for a first-hand view of the ground situation consequent to the rising water levels in the Jhelum river and streams in the Valley due to rain.

He visited the Boulevard Road, Hydraulic Gauge Centre of the Jhelum river at Ram Munshi Bagh, Lasjan, and relief camps in the Rawal Pora and Ram Bagh areas for a first-hand view of the ground situation consequent to Jhelum rising above high flood levels, a Raj Bhavan spokesperson said.

The governor inspected the designated relief camps at the Tourism Department’s Community Centre Goripora, Government Boys Higher Secondary School Rawal Pora and the ERA Complex in the Shopping Complex building at Ram Bagh. The divisional commissioner Kashmir explained the basic facilities being provided at these sites.

He directed the administration to keep all the agencies concerned at a high level of preparedness to deal with any exigency.

Amarnath Yatra

After remaining suspended for a day due to inclement weather, the Amarnath Yatra resumed from Jammu on Sunday, as the fourth batch of 6,877 pilgrims left for the twin base camps in Kashmir, officials said.

The pilgrims, including 1,429 women and 250 sadhus, left the Bhagwati Nagar base camp in Jammu on Sunday morning for Nunwan-Pahalgam and Baltal base camps in 229 vehicles under tight security arrangements, they said.

The yatra from Jammu was allowed to resume after traffic on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway was restored. Traffic on the highway was suspended on Saturday as a precautionary measure due to threat of floods in the Valley.

The yatra was suspended on Saturday at both Pahalgam and Baltal routes due to inclement weather. An official said keeping in view the safety of pilgrims, the yatra was suspended because of landslides, slippery tracks and shooting stones caused by incessant rainfall.

The state has experienced rainfall over the past three days with the downpour intensified on Saturday in many parts, including Srinagar. The rising water levels triggered fears of a rerun in the Valley of the 2014 floods that caused widespread devastation and left over 300 dead.

With inputs from PTI