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| Highway cleared, 200 vehicles cross into Valley | | 700 vehicles still stranded due to acute slippery conditions near Tunnel | | Early Times Report
SRINAGAR, Dec 31: Even as the snowfall subsided last night and hours of sunshine brought relief for the authorities on Friday, Srinagar-Jammu national highway was fully cleared of snow and nearly 200 vehicles smoothly crossed Jawahar Tunnel towards their destination of Srinagar this evening. As many as 600 trucks and nearly a hundred other vehicles were still stranded in Qazigund-Banihal belt and the highway was again closed for traffic due to acute slippery conditions on either side of the tunnel.
Immediately after driving all the way from Srinagar and joining at his office in Ramban, newly appointed SSP Traffic, National Highway, Syed Kifayat Hyder told Early Times that the Project Beacon authorities today succeeded in clearing the highway fully with the advantage of very good weather conditions. He said that subsequently 150 trucks and nearly 50 other vehicles, stranded at Banihal, were permitted to cross over to the Valley. Reports said that all the 200 vehicles reached their destination in Srinagar by late tonight.
SSP said that in response to a communication from DIG South Kashmir and due to acute slippery conditions on either side of Jawahar Tunnel, authorities again closed the highway for traffic this evening. He said that some 600 trucks were still stranded---300 each at Qazigund and Banihal. Besides, there were 100-odd minibuses, Tata Sumos and private cars---about 50 at Banihal and equal number at Qazigund. He was hopeful that the highway would be fully opened for traffic from either side by Saturday afternoon if weather continued to be friendly.
No commercial or passenger traffic was allowed from Srinagar and Jammu for the opposite destinations on the second consecutive day today.
Official sources said that some 400 passengers who had got stranded alongwith their 35 vehicles in a tube of Jawahar Tunnel were evacuated and later their vehicles were also pushed out successfully.
Srinagar Airport authorities said that all the scheduled incoming and outgoing flights operated today after a day’s break due to snowfall and poor visibility on Thursday.
Official sources said that Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah, who was constantly monitoring the situation from his holiday in London, deployed Minister of Finance, Abdul Rahim Rather, for taking review of the efforts being made for restoration of the services in Kashmir valley. Immediately after reaching here in the afternoon, Mr Rather took a meeting with the government functionaries. In addition to his junior Ministerial colleague, Nasir Aslam Wani, the high level meeting was attended by almost all divisional heads of different departments, including Divisional Commissioner, Asgar Hassan Samoon, and IGP Kashmir Zone, S M Sahai.
Rather later told mediapersons that Chief Engineers of R&B Kashmir and different wings of Power Development Department assured him that all roads in the Valley would be cleared and electric supply would be fully restored in entire Valley by 1600 hours on Saturday. Rather directed the authorities to restore all disrupted services within the next two days and ensure that supply of essential commodities was not affected. CAPD officials informed him that there were sufficient stocks of all commodities and no complaints of non-availability had been received from anywhere in the Valley.
Today’s reports from across the Valley said that electric supply was restored in more than 50% of the countryside. However, complaints of erratic supply and unscheduled cuts poured in from all areas. Residents in several areas complained that waterlogging was increasing due to melting of snow and a number of links had got submerged. Reports said that most of the shops remained open, over 60% of the transport operated and attendance was better today in all government offices. However, a large number of subscribers complained that telecommunication services, particularly those of BSNL mobile, were continuously disturbed.
In the wake of improvement in weather and hours of sunshine, hundreds of tourists and residents of Srinagar and other major towns today drove all the way to celebrate arrival of New Year at different hotels and a club at the winter sports destination of Gulmarg. Reports said that over a dozen hotels had made special arrangements of the New Year dance and music parties. Over 500 tourists are reportedly in Gulmarg to celebrate arrival of New Year in the backdrop of a thick white carpet of snow.
Here in the capital city, stationery marts did a brisk business in selling greeting cards to hundreds of youngsters. The sales were remarkably up as SMS services stand frozen on pre-paid cellphones of over 20 Lakh subscribers in Jammu & Kashmir. Post-paid subscribers however used the SMS services though there were huge complaints of late delivery. For the first time in the last nearly 22 years of armed conflict, one of the hotels organized a grand entertainment event on the eve of New Year arrival on Maulana Azad Road tonight. Sources said that more than a hundrd couples besides a large number of young boys and girls enjoyed the food, music and singing event.
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