Air traffic resumes at Srinagar after 24 hrs 

SRINAGAR: Air traffic was resumed on Saturday afternoon after remaining suspended from Srinagar International Airport  since Friday afternoon due to poor visibility and snowfall.

No flight could land or take off from the airport in the morning due to snow on runway and poor visibility, an official of the airport said.

He said snow clearance operation on the runway was started after there was improvement in the weather condition when the Sun came out from behind the clouds. No flight could operate this morning so far due to very poor visibility and snow, he added.

However, he said, air traffic was resumed once snow on the run was cleared and visibility improved this afternoon.

He said all flights were cancelled from Friday afternoon. However, he said in the Friday morning flights operated normally.

Passengers were very disappointed after they were informed that the air traffic remained suspended this morning. Some passengers said that they were scheduled to appear in the interviews at New Delhi while others claimed they had appointment with doctors.

A number of traders said passengers travelling from Srinagar airport face similar situation every winter and government has failed to address this issue.

A Met department spokesperson said that light to moderate rain and snow would occur during the next 24 hours at many places in Kashmir valley under the influence of a Western Disturbance (WD), which is active in the region.

Meanwhile, students who had to appear in competitive examinations in Jammu and other places had sought help from the government since surface transport, linking Kashmir with the rest of the country, remained suspended due to snowfall. (agencies)