Kashmir valley received a fresh spell of snowfall on Friday morning, making the weather pleasant but disrupting rail and air traffic. All the flights to and from Srinagar Airport were cancelled due to inclement weather conditions and NOTAM at Delhi.
After initial statements of flight cancellation, the Srinagar Airport said, "Current weather conditions indicate that normalisation of operations may take longer than expected. Snow clearance activities are ongoing at Srinagar Airport, and passengers are requested to stay in touch with their respective airlines for updates."
IndiGo has also issued an advisory stating, "Due to snowfall in Srinagar, flight operations, both take-offs and landings, have been temporarily put on hold. This may lead to extended wait times both onboard and on the ground."
"To ensure we are ready for departure as soon as we receive clearance, our team may complete boarding formalities in advance," the airline said, adding that it was closely monitoring the weather conditions," it added.
Roads closed
Due to dense snowfall, some of the highways and roads in the upper reaches have also been closed. The Jammu-Srinagar National Highway (NH-44) was closed, with movement also stopped at Jakhani Chowk in Udhampur.
Authorities said that in view of ongoing rains and snow accumulating up to Ramsoo, all types of traffic were halted at safer locations on NH-44 as a precautionary measure because of slippery road conditions.
The fresh spell of rainfall and snowfall in Jammu and Kashmir comes nearly three months after a dry spell in both the plains and upper reaches of Doda's Bhalesa and surrounding areas from midnight.
Train service hit
Apart from road and air traffic, the rail route was also affected due to adverse weather. The rail services on the Banihal–Baramulla section were disrupted as authorities cancelled key passenger trains.
Train No. 74613, from Budgam to Banihal, and Train No. 74614, from Banihal to Budgam, were cancelled due to heavy snow accumulation along the railway track.