In view of the critical flood situation in Jammu and Kashmir, as a precautionary measure, all schools in the Kashmir division will remain closed today, Srinagar Deputy Commissioner told news agency ANI. Amarnath Yatra had also been suspended from the Pahalgam route due to multiple landslides triggered by heavy rains and bad weather. This comes a day after the yatra was also suspended from the Baltal route because of the challenging Jammu and Kashmir weather. As the weather conditions have got better, the yatra has resumed from both locations. A flood alert has also been sounded after the Jhelum River flowed above the critical 21-feet mark at Sangam in south Kashmir's Anantnag district on Friday.
Here are the Live Updates of the flood situation in Jammu and Kashmir:
What was the PDP-BJP government doing after the devastating floods of 2014? What happened to the dredging of the Jehlum? Why was the carrying capacity of the flood channel not increased? Where did the money go? https://t.co/BkCqsXe6kD
- Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) June 30, 2018
An official of the Met Department said south Kashmir's Kokernag, in Anantnag district, received the highest rainfall of 63.4 mm till 8:30 am yesterday morning, while the neighbouring Qazigund received 58.6 mm of rainfall.
Srinagar - the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir - recorded 12.6 mm rainfall till 8:30 am yesterday but the intensity increased after that, the official said.
Pahalgam received 27.8 mm of rains. The rainfall has led to an increase in the water level in streams and rivers across the valley especially in south Kashmir, news agency PTI reported.
The water level was sharply increasing since yesterday morning, as there has been an increase of around one foot with each hour since 9 am. The fast rising water levels has induced fear among the valley residents of a re-run of 2014 floods that caused widespread devastation and left over 300 persons dead.
Sonam Lotus, Director of the MET department, said the weather would improve towards the afternoon.