Srinagar, September 6
The flood situation in Kashmir worsened today as the Jhelum, which continues to flow above the danger mark, breached several points in Pulwama and Srinagar districts.

The authorities in the Valley issued a fresh flood alert, warning people living near to the river and other water bodies to move to safer places. They termed the situation, particularly in the submerged areas along the river in the two districts as “grim and alarming”.

Incessant rain over the past one week has submerged many areas in south Kashmir, besides several low-lying residential areas on the left bank of the Jhelum and south of Srinagar city.

“The situation continues to remain critical,” Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, Rohit Kansal said while putting the total casualty in the Valley at 11. Kansal said the authorities today airlifted a team of the National Disaster Response Force to Awantipora, one of the affected areas.

“In view of incessant rain in the Valley and sharp increase in the water level in the Jhelum and other rivers… people living in the vicinity of these rivers are warned to immediately shift to safer areas,” a fresh alert issued by the authorities said. “This is necessary for the safety of lives in view of the prevailing flood situation,” it said.

Breaches on the embankments of the Jhelum were reported in the Kakapora, Soiteng, Arizal and Padshahi Bagh areas.

Rescue teams, including those of the Army, have been pressed into service in the worst hit areas of the Valley.

Meanwhile, the stretch of the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway from the Badamibagh Army cantonment area in Srinagar up to Pampore in Pulwama and in Anantnag district continues to remain submerged, cutting off south Kashmir from the summer capital.

People from the affected and cut-off areas from south Kashmir were making frantic calls and sending SOS messages to reach out to the authorities for help.

On the other hand, Anantnag, Pampore, Bijbehara and Awantipora towns and Kulgam and Shopian districts in south Kashmir continue to remain submerged for the third consecutive day as the floodwaters are not receding.

As per preliminary estimates by the government, over 390 villages across Kashmir have been submerged completely while 1,250 villages have been partially affected by the flood. Over 50 bridges and hundreds of kilometres of road, besides power installations and water schemes have been damaged.

Officials said the assessment of the “real damages” could be “fully ascertained” only after the floodwaters recede.

The situation in north Kashmir is also critical. The flooded streams and nullahs, particularly in Baramulla district, have submerged large swathes of paddy fields and orchards and damaged standing crop such as maize and vegetables in the Shrakwara, Wagoora, Wizar, Choora, Saloosa Wogub, Panzipora, Haigam and Tarzoo villages. The situation in the low-lying areas of Baramulla such Jahama, Khawajabagh and Dobagah in Sopore remains critical as there were reports that the Jhelum was overflowing its embankments.

The authorities in Baramulla have also issued fresh warnings to the people living near to the Jhelum to move to safer places as the water levels in the river continued to increase. There were reports of massive damage to property from Sheeri and Nawrwav villages of Baramulla and Boniyar tehsil of Uri.

Rising Jhelum a looming threat to Srinagar

The situation in Srinagar, parts of which continue to remain inundated, is “critical and grim”.

The fear of further flooding heightened today as the Jhelum breached its embankments at the Padshahi Bagh and Soiteng area, prompting the authorities to issue fresh alerts.

“It is an emergency and (there is a) grim situation in Srinagar. Though we have pressed all our resources into service, in view of the emerging situation, these appear limited,” said Deputy Commissioner, Srinagar, Farooq Shah.

Though the level of water in the Jhelum receded a bit on Friday, it rose once again today and is currently flowing at 12.4 metres, which is still above the danger mark, Shah added. He said the first priority was to rescue the trapped people and prevent loss of life.

Jammu/Samba, September 6
Continuing rain and flash floods have caused considerable damage to the border infrastructure along the Line of Control (LoC) and international fence in the Jammu region.

Flash floods triggered by heavy rain have damaged at least five outposts and border fencing along the international border, an official source said.

“While two or three posts, one observation tower and other border infrastructure have been washed away in the flash floods, five posts have suffered damages in Samba district,” the source said.

He added that dozens of BSF jawans were left stranded in the Ramgarh sub sector of Samba district.

“Around 150 jawans of the 200 Battalion of the BSF were trapped in border out posts at Majra, Maluchak, Ballad, Band Tip and Tanore villages and efforts are on to rescue them,” the source said.

He further said 500 to 600 metre of the border fence in the riverine belts in different areas of the Ramgarh sub-sector has also been damaged.

The BSF has also suffered extensive damage to its infrastructure in the Pargwal sector of Akhnoor where the Chenab was in spate.

Air Commodore PE Patange, Air Officer Commanding (AOC), Air Force Station Jammu, said: “In the last sortie today we rescued 14 BSF personnel and 12 soldiers from Akhnoor, Jourian and Hamirpur Kona areas. The sorties by medium lightweight helicopters are still on and they are yet to come back.”

“There are various border outposts in Akhnoor, Jourian and Hamirpur Kona where we are putting down ropes to airlift the personnel. It's a very tricky situation,” Air Commodore Patange told reporters here this afternoon.

When asked about the situation in border districts of Poonch and Rajouri, the AOC said the region, south of Pir Panjal range, was a bit difficult to manage because of the prevailing inclement weather and poor visibility.

Defence sources, meanwhile, said it could be an opportune time when Pakistan may try to push ultras into the state. “Therefore, the Army and the BSF are on a high alert,” a source said.

They added that the breaches on the LoC and border were being dominated by more men.

Sources, however, said the engineering staff was facing an uphill task. “Yes, the engineering staff is facing a tough task due to flash floods and mudslides. There has been no let up in rain since September 3,” the source said.

The BSF posts close to Basanter river, Devak river and Tarnah river in the Samba-Kathua sector; Aik Nullah, Nikki and Baddi Tawi in the RS Pura sector of Jammu district; and Chenab in the Pargwal sector of Akhnoor sub-division generally get inundated during monsoons.

“In Poonch and Rajouri districts there has been damage to the fence and posts at various stretches. But the Army has upped the vigil and is dominating the breaches from adjoining posts,” said an Intelligence source.

Jammu, September 6
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today said Jammu and Kashmir was facing an unpredented flood-like situation. He affirmed that the Assembly elections would be held as per schedule as his government would be able to restore the normal situation by November.

Omar said he did not feel that the “election schedule should be altered because of this natural disaster.”

“We are confident of overcoming this situation by or before November,” Omar told a hurriedly called press conference.

The polls are scheduled in November- December.

Omar, having visited the flood affected areas in the state in the past three days, is trying to be seen with the people in the time of distress.

He said the Centre had authorised his government to spend Rs 1,000 crore under the state disaster response fund (SDRF), though the actual amount, as announced by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, is Rs 1,100 crore.

The Chief Minister said more than 1,400 villages were marooned, 1,100 plus of them in Jammu region alone. The floods had claimed more than 100 lives and had caused vast damage to government and private properties, Omar added.

Srinagar, September 6
The flood situation in Kashmir continued to worsen today, with the authorities terming it another “Himalayan Tsunami”. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah drove Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh to inundated areas of Srinagar, including Budshah Bridge on the Jhelum, which is flowing above the danger mark.

Rajnath assured full help from the Centre in evacuation and rehabilitation efforts in the flood-ravaged state. He could not do the aerial survey of the flood-affected areas after landing in Srinagar this morning.

“I could not take off, so I will tour the city. The Centre will do everything possible to help the J&K Government in battling the situation,” the Home Minister told reporters after reviewing the situation at a high-level meeting held in the technical area of the airport.

The review meeting was attended by Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office Jitendra Singh, state ministers and senior officials of the state and Central governments.

Omar briefed Rajnath about the situation and the measures being taken by the state administration to safeguard and evacuate people from the inundated areas across the state.

Omar drove him through the flooded city for almost an hour. The latter visited the flood-affected areas of Baghat-Barzulla, Rambagh, Jhelum bund, Zero Bridge, Budshah bridge, Exhibition Crossing and Sarai Bala.

“The Chief Minister drove the Union Home Minister to the inundated areas in upper Srinagar to get visual appraisal of the devastation and the difficulties people are facing in the current hour of crisis,” an official spokesman said.

Minister of State for Irrigation and Flood Control Nazir Ahmad Gurezi, who attended the meeting, said the Union Home Minister expressed his satisfaction over the rescue and relief measures put in place by the state government.

Jammu, September 6
Terming the flood situation in Jammu and Kashmir as “grim”, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh today assured all possible help to the state government to cope with the “worst ever natural calamity”.

Interacting with mediapersons after visiting some of the flood-affected areas of the state today, the Union Home Minister said eight teams of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) were deployed in J&K to carry out rescue and relief operations in flood-affected areas. He also said the NDRF teams had so far saved the lives of 112 civilians.

“The state of Jammu and Kashmir is confronting the worst ever natural calamity in the form of floods, the biggest ever in the last 60 years,” the Union Minister said, adding, “I have been told that over 2,500 villages are badly affected by floods and incessant rain and 450 villages have been completely submerged.”

Assuring every possible help to the state, Rajnath said at present Rs 1,100 crore, which includes 90 per cent contribution from the Centre, was put at the disposal of the state government under the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF).

“I have told the J&K Government to utilise this fund. If the state requires more funds it can send a memorandum to the Centre in this regard,” Rajnath said.

“The entire nation is standing with the people of Jammu and Kashmir at this crucial juncture. If required, I would request governments of other states to come forward to help in the proper rehabilitation of the flood-affected people of Jammu and Kashmir,” he said.

“Jammu and Kashmir is the crown of India and the entire nation has emotional attachment with this state,” the Home Minister said and reiterated the NDA government’s commitment to make J&K a “progressive” and “prosperous” state.

Rajnath, meanwhile, emphasised the need to start rescue, relief and rehabilitation on a war footing. “We expect that the state government would start relief and rehabilitation on war-footing.”

He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi while expressing his sympathies with the affected families has assured all help from the Union Government to Jammu and Kashmir in this hour of crisis.

The Union Minister further said the Prime Minister has announced Rs 2 lakh ex gratia to the next of kin of those killed in flash floods and Rs 50,000 to the injured.

Rajnath said he could not conduct an aerial survey of the flood-affected areas of the Valley due to bad weather. He said he, however, conducted the aerial survey of the Jammu region and described the situation in many areas, including the Akhnoor sector, as grim.

He also said six helicopters had been sent to the state for assisting the administration in its efforts to rescue and evacuate stranded people.

New Delhi, September 6
Taking note of the widespread damage, disruption of public infrastructure and loss of lives and property due to floods in Jammu and Kashmir, the Congress today urged the Centre to declare it “national calamity”' and place funds at the disposal of the state government to carry out rescue and relief operations.

Former J&K Chief Minister and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad spoke to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting Central assistance and intervention.

“Seeking personal involvement of the Prime Minister in view of the very grave and grim situation prevailing in the entire state, Azad requested him to declare the large scale and unprecedented devastation that has occurred in the state as a ‘national calamity’,” a press note circulated here by the Congress said.

It said Azad called up the Prime Minister after he toured flood-hit areas in Jammu and Srinagar cities and in view of the huge loss of lives and unprecedented disruption of public infrastructure and private properties due to incessant rains and massive floods that have engulfed the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir for the last four days.

He said extensive and large scale damage of unprecedented proportions has occurred to public infrastructure, like roads, bridges, drinking water systems, power distribution systems, etc, and private properties, like houses, shops, vehicles, livestock, etc. The devastation has engulfed the entire state from Kathua to Leh, including Samba, Jammu, Doda, Reasi, Rajouri-Poonch, Anantnag, Shopian, Pulwama, Kulgam, Srinagar and Baramulla.

“It is beyond the capacity and resources of the state government to meet the challenges of the situation. Azad requested the Prime Minister to immediately place funds at the disposal of the state government so that the rescue, relief and rehabilitation operations are carried out in an effective and coordinated manner,” the press note said.

While appreciating the role of the armed forces in coming to the support of state governments in disaster situations like the current one, the Congress leader also requested that both Army and Air Force teams be pressed into service, similar to one during the Uttarakhand disaster.

The National Disaster Response Force said it deployed eight teams in the flood-hit parts of the state for carrying out rescue and relief work.

Besides teams in Rajouri and Akhnoor districts, today one team each was airlifted from Bishina airport to Jammu and Srinagar, while another consisting of 40 rescuers is deployed at Srinagar. Two more teams are en route, one each to Anantnag and Kulgam district.

Meanwhile, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi expressed his condolences to families who have lost loved ones and those who have been displaced from their homes due to the floods in J&K. “I am grateful to the brave men and women of our armed forces and paramilitary forces who are risking their lives to provide relief to the people. I appeal to the authorities to ensure that relief and rescue operations reach those in need swiftly. My prayers are with the people of J&K,” he said.

Srinagar, September 6
Governor NN Vohra, who has been keeping a constant eye on the flood situation in the state, reviewed the relief and rescue operations underway in the Kashmir and Jammu regions today.

A Raj Bhawan spokesperson said the Governor discussed the prevailing situation with the Chief Minister and also visited some of the areas which have been submerged by the overflowing Jhelum.

The Governor appealed to all the volunteers trained by the Jammu and Kashmir Red Cross Society and all able bodied young men to join hands and support the relief measures being carried out by the civil administration.

The Governor also received a detailed report from Lt Gen KH Singh, GOC, 16 Corps, about the enormous loss in Rajouri and Poonch districts. He was, however, informed that nearly 1,000 marooned people had been rescued and taken to relief camps being run by the Army.

Srinagar, September 6
An Army boat carrying 11 personnel capsized in the Kakapora village of Pulwama district, even as the Army intensified its “Mission Sahayata” across Kashmir.

The incident forced the Army to launch airborne operation to get out the trapped soldiers.

“While moving to a place of safety, the boat carrying 11 personnel capsized and soldiers got stranded,” an Army spokesperson said here.

“A helicopter-based rescue mission was launched to evacuate the stranded personnel. However, bad weather prevented execution of the mission and finally boats were used to reach the trapped soldiers,” the spokesperson said.

He added that two soldiers were still trapped in flood and efforts were on to rescue them.

The spokesperson, meanwhile, said the Army had intensified its “Mission Sahayata”, employing more than 60 columns and 13 engineering teams, which were tirelessly working to rescue precious lives trapped in flooded villages, isolated houses and multi-storied buildings in inundated areas across Kashmir.

“As the number of shelter less people is rising, the Army is also providing tented accommodation to hundreds of people,” he said.

Srinagar, September 6
Life across Kashmir was disrupted due to the incessant rain for the past more than 72 hours which inundated residential areas, disrupted power and water supplies, road and railway connectivity and led to shortage of essential commodities in the Valley.

Over the past three days, the focus of the civil administration has been on minimising loss of life by evacuating people.

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who has been personally supervising the rescue operations in several areas and visiting them, has already issued directions to take measures for safety of people.

In the effort to prevent loss of lives by diverting water channels away from the residential areas, particularly the major towns in south Kashmir and the capital Srinagar, the flood waters have been flooding paddy fields. Paddy, which is the main crop of Kashmir, was heavily damaged due to the gushing waters. The heavy downpour has also caused heavy damage to apple production across the Valley.

The 300-km Srinagar-Jammu National Highway, the only life-line to Kashmir, has been closed to traffic due to landslides. Many portions of the highway between Srinagar and Qazigund are under water, disrupting traffic movement.

With this, the supply of essential commodities, including cooking gas, vegetables, ration items and other merchandise, has been disrupted. Many people in the affected areas have been facing the problem of food and shelter as the road connectivity and other communication links have been disrupted.

Anantnag, the major town of south Kashmir, has been the worst affected. It is inundated but the residents have been shifted to safer places. Power and drinking water facilities have been affected and no telephonic or mobile connectivity is available.

Srinagar, September 6
With the situation in the Valley continuing to remain grim due to floods, the scheduled haj flights from the Srinagar International Airport have been postponed till September 12.

As per a notification issued by the State Haj Committee, all the Haj flights till September 12 stand postponed.

“The notification to this effect has been issued by the State Haj Committee in view of incessant rain and flash flood in the state,” an official statement read, adding that new dates for these flights would be notified later.

On September 4, the authorities had cancelled all scheduled haj flights from September 5 to 7.

Jammu, September 6
The Vaishno Devi yatra remained suspended from Katra onwards on the third consecutive day today due to heavy rain.

Chief Executive Officer of the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board Mandeep K Bhandari said keeping in view the safety of pilgrims, the yatra remained suspended today and there was no possibility of its resumption tomorrow. Bhandari said a close watch was being kept on the obtaining weather situation and any decision about the resumption of yatra would be taken after improvement in weather.

He reiterated his advice to the intending pilgrims to plan their visit to the pilgrimage after the resumption of the yatra. — TNS

Jammu, September 6
Admitting that his ministry has written a letter to the Jammu and Kashmir Government to identify land in the Valley for Kashmiri Pandits (KPs), Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh today said the issue was earlier discussed with Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.

“Nearly 15 days ago, the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir was in Delhi. I discussed this issue with him,” Singh told reporters and pointed out that the Union Government has made a provision of Rs 500 crore for the rehabilitation of Kashmiri Pandits in the Valley.

“It was the outcome of my meeting with Omar Abdullah that Home Ministry has written a letter to the J&K Government in this regard,” he said.

“We are committed to the rehabilitation of Kashmiri Pandits. The state government can start the process of identifying the land for their rehabilitation after the floods,” he added.

“The letter has gone in the normal course. The letter only means the process has begun,” Rajnath Singh said.

The Home Minister on Friday asked the Jammu and Kashmir Government to identify “suitable land” for the rehabilitation of some 3 lakh KPs who had migrated from the Kashmir valley in the early 1990s due to militancy.

Rajnath Singh assured that the problems of other refugees, including those from West Pakistan, would be solved in a phased manner.

“Wait for the next couple of months, problems of all refugees would be solved”, he assured.

Srinagar, September 6
The departmental promotion committee of the Jammu and Kashmir Armed Police today approved promotions of 150 officials.

The promotions were approved during a meeting of the departmental promotion committee headed by Additional Director General of Police (Armed) SM Sahai.

“The committee promoted six assistant sub inspectors to the rank of sub inspectors, 81 senior grade constables as head constables and 63 constables as senior grade constables,” a police spokesperson said.

“These promotions shall act as a big morale booster for the Jammu and Kashmir Armed Police and it has been the endeavor of the promotion committees to fill all the vacancies required to be filled up through promotions,” the spokesperson said.

Jammu, September 6
Ladakh, the land of high passes, continues to be a favourite destination for tourists from across the country and globe with the region registering almost four times’ increase in the number of tourists during the past 10 years.

The tourist flow, both domestic and foreign, to Ladakh has steadily increased in the past 10 years. The number of tourists has increased from 35,091 in 2004 to 1, 37,702 in 2013.

“A total of 69,496 foreigners visited Ladakh region during the past two years. In 2012, 38,510 foreigners visited Ladakh, while the number was 30,596 in 2013,” official sources said, adding that the number of domestic tourists visiting Ladakh was about 2.5 lakh comprising 1.4 lakh in 2012 and 1.07 lakh in 2013.

To attract more tourists and facilitate their hassle-free visit, the local administration had recently abolished the decades-long “Inner Line Permit” for domestic tourists visiting Ladakh region, sources said.

“Indian nationals are now allowed to visit certain areas after verification of their identity proofs such as passport, driving licence, service identity card, PAN card, Aadhaar card, smart card or election ID card. “The identification proof is treated as an Inner Line Permit,” sources said.

They said only foreign nationals were now required to seek permission from the district administration before visiting the region.

Ladakh, also known as the cold desert of the country, holds strategic importance as it shares borders with Pakistan in the west and China in the north and east. The region was opened for tourism way back in 1974 and at that time, the tourists were allowed to travel only through 434 Srinagar-Leh Highway. Later, tourists started flowing to Ladakh via 479-km-long Leh-Manali highway.

On August 12, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during his visit to the region, had laid special focus on the tourism sector in Ladakh.

Ladakh remains cut off from the rest of the country through road for six to seven months in a year. “Recently, the number of flights between Delhi and Leh was increased to 28. There has been a proposal with the Civil Aviation Ministry to further increase this number following request from local MP Thupstan Chhewang. The airlines would also be asked to keep the fares reasonable especially for the locals,” a source said.