Flight operations disrupted at Srinagar

Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Nov 26: The flight operations at Srinagar airport were disrupted due to fog today as all morning flights were cancelled and only five flights operated in the afternoon while snowfall disrupted traffic at Zojila along Srinagar-Leh highway.
An official said that all morning flights were cancelled this morning at Srinagar Airport due to poor visibility caused by fog. He said that three Air India and two GOAir flights operated between 2-4 p.m. after visibility improved this afternoon.
In the meantime, Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, Baseer Ahmad Khan today convened a meeting to address issue of cancellation of flights at Srinagar airport due to poor visibility.
He directed the officials to take measures to minimize inconvenience to passengers and ensure continuity of flight operations during low visibility conditions during winters. He asked airline carriers to chalk out strategies to deal with flight delays and rescheduling.
Asking the airline carriers to desist from cancelling flights in advance, Khan said it creates panic among the passengers. On the issue of installation of Runway Visual Range (RVR) devices at Srinagar Airport, he asked the concerned agencies to expedite the draft proposal so that it can be forwarded to Government of India.
The Div Com directed civil aviation authorities to hold training session for staff to deal with foggy conditions.
As the fog disrupts air traffic at Srinagar Airport, snowfall at Zojila disrupted traffic at Srinagar-Leh highway connecting Kashmir valley with Ladakh region.
Around seven inches of fresh snow accumulated on Zojila pass and two inches at Sonamarag causing slippery road conditions and forcing authorities to suspend traffic movement.
Gurez in North Kashmir’s Bandipora district received season’s first snowfall last night.
Upper reaches of Gurez received snowfall late last night while it started snowing this morning in plains, including Dawar. Razdan top also received seasons first snowfall late last night.
And in the meantime, the night temperature across Kashmir increased by several degrees providing relief to the people from cold conditions, even as the Valley remained engulfed under a thick layer of fog.
The minimum temperature in Srinagar was recorded at 4.3 degrees Celsius,  nearly three degrees up from the previous night’s 1.5 degrees Celsius.
Kupwara, in north Kashmir, registered a low of 2.7 degrees Celsius – up by nearly four degrees from the previous night’s minus 1.2 degrees Celsius.
The minimum in Kokernag town in south settled at 3.4 degrees Celsius, while Qazigund recorded a low of 1.8 degrees Celsius.
Gulmarg in north Kashmir registered a low of 1.6 degrees Celsius, up from the previous night’s 1 degrees Celsius.
Pahalgam registered the minimum of 3.8 degrees Celsius – an increase of over three degrees from 0.6 degrees Celsius yesterday.
Night temperature in Leh town in Ladakh region, went up by two degrees from minus 4 degrees Celsius to settle at minus 2 degrees Celsius.Leh was the coldest recorded place in the state.
The temperature for the nearby Kargil town settled at the low of minus 1.1 degrees Celsius.

Follow our WhatsApp channel